Question:
What is distal and proximals?

   — mischief85 (posted on August 10, 2002)

August 10, 2002
A distal RNY would be where a large portion of the sm. intestine is bypassed, whereas proximal is a very small portion. The more that is bypassed, the more malabsorption of calories and nutrients. There is conflicting info. on the lengths. Some consider 75cm (me) to 125cm as proximal, and over that distal. I know it can go as far as 250cm because a man in our support group has that much bypassed. The doctor makes that determination based on your BMI and how much weight you need to lose to be at a healthy weight. Me at 272lb (lightweight) got 75cm, him at 450lb got 250cm. Just remember, statistically the weight loss is faster with distal, but so is the rate of malnutrition if you don't supplement properly. Hope this helps. Good Luck.
   — Tina B.