Prospective Study of Hormone Levels After Bariatric Surgery

This project will study the effects of surgery for obesity on bone metabolism and hormones that regulate appetite.

Subjects will be recruited from the outpatient obesity and surgical clinics at Columbia-Presbyterian Medical Center after they have chosen to undergo a surgical procedure. The groups will not be randomized. Rather, they will decide on their choice of surgery along with their physicians. The patients will be evaluated pre-operatively and followed post-operatively for 5 years. Initial evaluation will include a complete history and physical examination, measurement of calcium, parathyroid hormone (PTH) and vitamin D, and assessment of skeletal health using markers of bone turnover and bone mineral density.