ST. AUGUSTINE, Fla.--Flagler Hospital’s medical director of bariatric services, Dr. Robert Marema, was featured on ORLive (www.or-live.com), Tuesday, January 15 at 7 p.m. Viewers had the opportunity to see Dr. Marema perform a laparoscopic gastric bypass surgical procedure.

“Gastric bypass, or weight loss surgery, has been recognized as the most effective and long lasting treatment for morbid obesity,” commented Marema. “Evidence suggests it is also among the most effective treatments for metabolic diseases and conditions including type 2 diabetes, hypertension, high cholesterol, and obstructive sleep apnea.”

Also featured on the webcast was Dr. Michael Perez, who performed a gastric sleeve procedure at HolyCrossHospital in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida. Both procedures were recorded live-to-tape and are presented unedited during this combined broadcast. The surgeons used PSD Veritas, an innovative non-permanent biologic material, developed by Synovis Life Technologies., which is easy to prepare, provides increased resistance to leaks and rupture, allows for natural healing, and becomes part of the body tissue.

Flagler Hospital launched its bariatric surgery center in April of 2007, in cooperation with Dr. Marema’s nationally recognized organization, US Bariatric.  Dr. Marema has performed over 5,500 bariatric procedures and was ranked as #1 in the country by Obesity Help magazine’s top 100 “Surgeon Rankings…Lives Transformed”.