That's what happened to the man you are about to meet. Shedding pounds nearly ruined his life.
Harold Massey owns a funeral home. The piano in back is how he escapes. He's a gospel singer. His office packed with pictures of Nashville legends.
After ballooning to 571 pounds a few years ago, Massey lost 100 pounds on a diet. But he couldn't lose a patch of hanging skin, called a pannus.
Doctors wouldn't touch him.
"I was dying, I was dying," Massey said.
Dr. Detlev Erdmann says Massey had a super-sized pannus, a new term for someone with 22 pounds or more of loose skin. "Once you've developed a pannus like this, it's literally impossible to get rid of it."
It can cutoff blood flow, lead to back pain, skin ulcers and gangrene. Of the nation's 6.8 million morbidly obese adults, more than 19,000 had similar surgeries over the past two years. That's up from about 200 a decade ago.
"We're dealing with subset of the patient population that's kinda hidden somewhere," Erdmann acknowledged.
"I was scared to death," Massey admitted. "I was scared to death to have this surgery."
Erdmann cut 40 pounds from Massey's body. He now weighs 420. That's still big, but he can work for the first time in five years, and he can move around the keys better, too.
"It's like a new life, it really is," said Massey.
The difference between this operation and a tummy tuck is pretty basic. When removing a pannus, doctors simply cut off the fat. During a tummy tuck, doctors cut off the fat, then reshape the muscles underneath.
Dr. Erdmann says the biggest pannus he's ever removed weighed 90 pounds.
OBESITY RATES TAKE OVER: According to a report released from the Centers for
Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), obesity rates in America seem to have
remained constant for the last five years. Unfortunately, the numbers have
stabilized at very high rates. Data shows that almost 34 percent of adults are
obese. This is more than double the numbers 30 years ago. Even more shocking is
the number of obese children, which has nearly tripled to a staggering 17
percent. According to the CDC, in an article published in the Journal of the
American Medical Association, a person is considered obese if their body mass
index is 30 or higher. Obesity.org states that not one state in the US met their
goal of 15 percent obesity for the Healthy People 2010 objective. In a 2007 poll
from the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System, 25.6% of respondents were
obese. In addition, 26.4% of men and 24.8% of women were obese. Obesity
prevalence has shown to be stronger in the south (27.3%) and lower in the
northeast (24.4%). The west has the lowest obesity rates (23.1%). "The equation
is simple. Whether a person is overweight or not depends on the difference
between the amounts of energy consumed versus expended. To control weight,
Americans must engage in both healthy eating and regular physical activity,"
says Charlene Burgeson, health scientist in CDC's Division of Adolescent and
School Health.
WHY A PANNICULECTOMY?: According to Dr. Susan Downey, the most notable pains
from pannus growth are lower back pain, rashes and gangrene. "A Panniculectomy
removes only the overlying skin and fat, while an Abdominoplasty (a tummy tuck)
not only removes the hanging skin and fat, but the skin of the entire abdomen is
tightened up and the muscles underneath are also tightened up," says Dr. Downey.
MAKE IT STOP!: What can you do to prevent obesity and the possibility of a
Panniculectomy? Dr. Robin T.W. Yuan, a Beverly Hills Plastic Surgeon, suggests
to first set a "target" lifestyle which you wish to achieve and maintain it,
along with a stable weight, for at least 6 months. Steady exercise each day or
every other day as well as healthy eating are also good ways to ensure you are
living a healthy life.
For More Information:
Detlev Erdmann, M.D., Ph.D.
Duke University
DUMC 3181
Durham, NC 27710
(O) 919-684-3320
