Question:
What does distal and proximal mean?

My doctor has never mentioned this to me but when reading the message boards I see it come up occasionaly.    — 0hio (posted on July 18, 2004)

July 18, 2004
Distal and proximal refer to the length of intestine that is bypassed in surgery. In theory, the longer the bypass, the more malabsorption there is. SOme feel that this impacts on the amount/rate of excess weight that is lost, although from what I have read on the board here, this is not always the case. I asked my Dr. after surgery how much he bypassed. He claims approx. 150 cm, and it was considered distal. Some surgeons are doing much more than that with success. Other posters, please correct me if I am wrong. Thanks!!
   — Fixnmyself