Dr. Alan Wittgrove, our program Medical Director, is known as the father of laparoscopic gastric bypass: he performed the first laparoscopic gastric bypass in the world as primary surgeon in 1993.  This was performed right here in San Diego, California.  In 2005 Wittgrove Bariatric Center along with Scripps Memorial Hospital, La Jolla was awarded the designation of “Center of Excellence” (COE) by the SRC / ASBS.  This certification was initiated by the Surgical Review Corporation and the American Society for Bariatric Surgery to better insure quality in bariatric surgery.  The COE designation by this independent review corporation is based on the programs components, outcomes and statistics.  There is also a site visit involved to validate the program’s data.  Unfortunately, there are several “COE’s” being listed today which can cause confusion.  Many insurance companies have created their own which are often based on provider contracts and not site validation.  The importance of the SRC / ASBS Center of Excellence was validated by the federal government in its Medicare National Coverage Determination (NCD).  This document was issued in February 2006 and proclaimed that Medicare patients could ONLY be operated on in ASBS (or ACS) Centers of Excellence. 

Our program offers a comprehensive multidisciplinary approach to surgical weight loss. Because surgery is only a tool, not a cure, we believe that the pre and post - operative support we provide gives our patients the foundation and education they need to succeed.  Our multidisciplinary team includes knowledgeable nursing staff that provides pre and post operative education and follow-up.  Our program psychologist, Dr. Cathy Reto, is a specialist in eating disorders and guiding patients who have chosen bariatric surgery.  She facilitates our monthly Emotional Well Being support group, as well.  Our exercise coordinator, Trisha Dinenberg, educates patients on an individual basis, to help them achieve fitness.  Check out her bio under “our staff”.  She coordinates specialized exercise classes just for our bariatric patients, as well as one on one training and internet coaching.  Our general monthly support group has a variety of topics on fitness, nutrition and overall well being topics to add to our patients knowledge for success.  Along with our San Diego support groups, we also have monthly support groups facilitated by Dr. Wittgrove and his staff in Las Vegas and quarterly meetings in Alaska, as well.

Our program has been very active in education and training.  Dr. Wittgrove has published multiple articles and has been course director and staff on countless bariatric courses.  Through our training site here in San Diego, Dr. Wittgrove has trained over one hundred surgeons around the world on the laparoscopic bariatric techniques.  Tracy Martinez RN, BSN (our Program Director) was the chairperson for the Allied Health section of the ASBS for three years and is course director for many courses each year relating to the role of allied health professionals on the bariatric team.  She is also the co-chair of the Allied Health section of the International Federation for the Surgery of Obesity.

In the summer of 1999, Wilson Philips singer, Carnie Wilson, chose Dr. Alan Wittgrove as her surgeon.  Carnie has become an ambassador for bariatric surgery, sharing her story throughout her post operative journey in her book titled Gut Feelings.  It started with her surgery being broadcast live on the internet.  Carnie knew many others suffered from the same disease, morbid obesity and wanted to share and educate others on surgical option.  We again worked with Carnie through our affiliation with LITE and HOPE as Dr. Wittgrove performed surgery on football legend, Anthony Davis.  This can be seen on LITEANDHOPE.com (archived) and with the help of other bariatric surgeons throughout the nation; a significant educational event was created.

Few programs have evaluated their long-term outcomes as Dr. Wittgrove has.  In fact, few programs have outcomes for longer than even a couple of years.  In Bariatric Surgery, we know that results at one or two years are nice to know but the real important numbers are those at five years and longer.  We have added our program’s data, which has been reported / published in peer review journals and presented at annual society conferences.  Since we believe outcomes and longer term results are important, we have added a section on some questions we think you should ask of your bariatric surgeon. 

Since Dr. Wittgrove and Wittgrove Bariatric Center have significant experience in Bariatric Surgery on the Adolescent Patient and Revision Bariatric Surgery we have added sections on both of those topics as well. 

And one of our newest additions is our Medical Weight Loss Program.  Surgery is a powerful tool but it is not for everyone.  Some insurance programs require a medical program before surgery can be considered.  Millions of individuals suffer from “Obesity” (BMI less than 35) and surgery is not an option for them at this time.  Many in this category need help and so we have teamed up with Dr. Dinenberg to offer a comprehensive, multidisciplinary, medical program.  Call the office to ask about this aspect of our program.