Research

Mixed

Bariatric surgery is the only weight-loss treatment providing sustained weight loss and improvement of obesity-related comorbidities, yet access is inequitably distributed based on sociodemographic factors.

Bariatric surgery is the most effective treatment for morbid obesity, but access is not equal. If you meet the medical criteria (BMI ≥40 or ≥35 with comorbidities), systemic factors like income, race, or location may prevent you from receiving it. The paper calls for identifying these specific barriers to improve equity.

ModerateQualifiesMEDIUM confidence
Bariatric surgery is the only weight-loss treatment available that results in both sustained weight loss and improvements of obesity-related comorbidities... However, the population who actually receives bariatric surgery does not reflect the individuals who need it the most.
Timothy Jackson et al. · Systematic Reviews · 2014

Why this rating

This is a protocol for a systematic review; it cites existing evidence supporting the efficacy of surgery but does not present new primary data.

Source

Health inequity in access to bariatric surgery: a protocol for a systematic review

Timothy Jackson et al. · Systematic Reviews · 2014

DOI 10.1186/2046-4053-3-15

Meta-analysisCited 36×
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DOI resolved against Crossref · corpus check 2026-06-10

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