Patients urged to be cautious of surgical tourism special offers

People seeking medical procedures abroad should be wary of special offers or discounted rates because such offers “raise concern about the quality of care”, experts have warned.

And patients “must not be subjected to targeted social media advertising relating to bariatric surgery abroad”, academics said.

People with obesity are increasingly seeking care overseas, driven by long waiting lists for care at home, they added.

There are likely to be thousands of such cases each year in the UK, but experts said the true figure is unknown.

There have been reports that some patients have received substandard treatment after going abroad for treatment – with some people dying due to poor care.

As a result, experts have come up with safe practice guidelines on bariatric and metabolic surgery tourism.

These include various recommendations for patients, doctors, bariatric surgery centres and social media companies.

Patients must consult their doctor at home before travelling abroad for a procedure, according to the new consensus paper, which was developed with the European Association for the Study of Obesity, the International Federation for Surgery of Obesity and Metabolic Disorders European Chapter, and the European Collation for People Living with Obesity.

And patients who are overweight but not obese – with a body mass index score of less than 30 – should not be able to seek bariatric surgery abroad, the authors said.

Other recommendations in the guidelines, published in the International Journal of Surgery, include:

– Surgical tourism should only be provided at accredited centres.

– These centres should only provide accredited surgeries or treatments.

– Patients should be followed up for at least two years after the procedure.

– They should also be provided with clear information on the risks and benefits of the surgery, including the risks associated with travel.

– Patients who are medical tourists should not be involved in research studies.

European Association for the Study of Obesity president Professor Volkan Yumuk said: “There have been too many cases of poorly performed, and in some cases unsafe, obesity surgery carried out abroad under what we would call medical tourism.

“In producing these guidelines, the obesity community has come together to make sure obesity surgery in Europe is safe and meets appropriate standards, wherever it takes place.”

Lead author of the paper Dr Laurence Dobbie, from Kings College London, said: “Across Europe, people living with obesity often wait several years, or lack access entirely, to obesity surgery in their home countries, prompting many to seek treatment abroad.

“Unfortunately, some of these providers fail to meet basic standards of care, resulting in serious injuries and, tragically, even death.

“These new guidelines – developed in collaboration with healthcare professionals and patients from across Europe – set out clear standards for obesity surgery in the medical tourism sector, with the aim of improving patient safety and preventing further harm.”

A recent Obesity Health Alliance report highlighted that some patients are being asked to wait for up to five years for specialist weight management support in England.

Some overweight and obesity management services are so overstretched that they have closed their waiting lists entirely.

– The latest Health Survey for England shows 64% of adults were overweight or obese in 2022.