Paresh Rajajoshiwala Bariatric Surgeon M.D.,F.A.C.S.

Dr. Paresh Rajajoshiwala, known to patients as Dr. Raja, is a bariatric surgeon and the medical director for the Bridges Center for Surgical Weight Loss. Since his relocation to San Antonio, Texas, in 2003 he has established a well-respected surgical weight loss program at Southwest General Hospital. Over the past three years he has cared for hundreds of obesity surgery patients with a strong track record of minimal complications. Born in the western part of India, Dr. Raja immigrated with his parents and siblings to the United States in 1981. He completed his high school studies in southern California. He then fulfilled the requirements for his undergraduate studies and received his Bachelor of Science degree from the University of California at Irvine. He attended Northwestern University’s School of Medicine in Chicago, Illinois. Dr. Raja completed his Surgical Internship at the University of Southern California, Los Angeles County Hospital, and his Surgical Residency at The Cottage Health System in Santa Barbara, California. Bariatric surgery is the main focus of Dr. Raja’s practice. He has seven years of general and advanced laparoscopic surgery experience, and four years of laparoscopic and open bariatric surgery experience. Dr. Raja has been Board Certified in General Surgery since 2001 and is a Fellow of the American College of Surgeons. Since 2004, he has been an active member of the American Society of Bariatric Surgery, the largest society for surgical treatment of obesity in the world. Dr. Raja specializes in the Roux-en-Y Gastric Bypass and the adjustable LAP-BAND® procedures. Both the Roux-en-Y Gastric Bypass and the LAP-BAND® procedures are tools for weight loss for patients who are morbidly obese and cannot lose weight by diet and exercise alone. He also performs revision bariatric surgery and recently started offering a new non-surgical procedure called the StomaphyX™. This procedure is designed for people who had gastric bypass surgery two or more years ago and have not reached their target weight, or have started to regain weight. With this procedure, the surgeon is able to revise the stomach pouch endoscopically with no incisions, and the recovery time for this operation is approximately 48 hours or less. The Bridges Center for Surgical Weight Loss is the first surgical weight loss center in Texas to offer the StomaphyX™ procedure. The Bridges Center for Surgical Weight Loss is a comprehensive surgical weight loss program. This program is designed to help weight loss surgery patients lose weight and keep it off. The Bridges Center goes far beyond the weight loss surgery procedure by providing a life-changing program that includes nutritional and exercise guidance, monthly support groups, coordination of counseling services, and long-term follow-up. The patients at the Bridges Center experience a team approach to their weight loss surgery in order to maximize long-term outcome. The weight loss surgery team consists of a bariatric coordinator, diet and exercise counselor, medical assistant, insurance coordinator, and Dr. Raja. The keys to success at the Bridges Center for Surgical Weight Loss are the extensive pre-operative education and post-operative follow-up care. Dr. Raja views follow-up care as an integral part of the surgical weight loss approach. Patients are followed at the Bridges Center for Surgical Weight Loss for at least five years after surgery. Follow-up visits typically occur at two weeks, three months, six months, and annually. The Bridges Center for Surgical Weight Loss holds free informational seminars on a monthly basis at Southwest General Hospital. Dr. Raja attends each seminar, gives a short presentation, and answers any questions from potential patients. If you are interested in the program at the Bridges Center for Surgical Weight Loss please visit www.bridgestx.com or call 1-888-870-9474 for more information.

• Nancy Marquez — Austin, TX

• Younan Nowzaradan — Houston, TX