A friend just got back from Mexico having the gastric sleeve at CER with a very common doctor used here. They had to double up in rooms and her roommate was a SIXTEEN year old girl. The girl was 5'7" and weighed 185 pounds. Her mom was there with her, and she had had the surgery a couple years ago with mediocre success. But gastric sleeve surgery on a 16 year old with a BMI of around 30? My friend talked to her and there had been no real efforts on changing lifestyle, dieting, etc. and no health issues. Maybe I am totally out of touch, but I was astounded that a doctor would do this surgery at that age/weight/history.

They may see it as preventive. No private rooms sucks. The mother is more of a concern than the doctors, living with her must be hell.

There are actually some studies and schools of thought about performing VSG on teenagers as a preventative measure. It's been a while since I read up on it, but there does at least seem to be some medical rationale for it. But, like with most research and studies, people have varying opinions.

Edit: a quick Google search on "sleeve gastrectomy on teenagers" turned up quite a few links to studies and articles about the debate.

I had surgery in Mexico and there was a mother/daughter team in my group. The mom (around 45 years old) had had the surgery about a year and a half ago and was able to lose 85 pounds and her type II diabetes. Her 16 year old daughter is gorgeous and probably about a BMI 31 or 32 and also has type II diabetes. Their main concern was the long term affects of the diabetes and meds on the daughter's organs. I stay in touch with them and daughter is doing fantastic! Off all diabetic meds!

The teenage girl could have a health problem that wasn't disclosed to the OP's friend, or issues such as PCOS might be prevalent in her family and a concern for her and her mom. We cannot really evaluate the situation as it's described because there are too many unknown variables. Sixteen is definitely young for having the surgery, but she might be mentally equipped to handle it already.

Is it normal for patients at CER to be in a double room?