Finding “New” Things after Bariatric Surgery
Last week one of my patients who had lost a lot of weight after her bariatric operation returned complaining of finding a new mass just below her breast bone. She was obviously very worried.
After I examined her I indeed noted a firm ½ inch hard rubbery mass just as she had described.
I explained that this finding is called the xiphoid process and is a normal anatomic structure. She was just now finding this for the first time because she had lost enough weight it was no longer hidden in the fatty tissue!
This is a very common occurrence. As a bariatric surgery patient loses a lot of weight, say 100 to even 200 lbs or more they are able to “find things” they did not even know they had such as hip bones, back bones, clavicles, tail bones and even ribs that they thought were breast masses!
Of course these patients are often embarrassed when they find out these structures were always there but could not be felt until they lost significant amount of weight but it is just part of discovering themselves anew.
Having bariatric surgery is truly a Fresh Start for many and a new discovery of the new you.
Great timing, just found that body part myself over this past weekend. Assumed that it was part of me, but planned to research it just the same.
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