General Surgery, Bariatric (Weight Loss) Surgery

Mr Habib Rahman has been in private practice in Central, East and South Auckland for 17 years. He is a General Surgeon with special interests in the following:

• Endocrine disorders

• Gastrointestinal disorders

• Bariatric surgery/weight loss surgery

Mr Rahman is employed by Counties Manukau Health specialising in these disorders.

While the name would suggest that the focus of general surgery is to perform operations, sometimes this is not the case. Many patients are referred to surgeons with conditions that do not need surgical procedures, but merely require counselling or medical treatment.

What is Laparoscopic Surgery?

Laparoscopic (or keyhole) surgical procedures are performed through several small cuts (incisions) usually only 5-10mm long, rather than through one large incision.

A long, narrow surgical telescope (laparoscope) that has a tiny camera and light source attached, is inserted through one of the incisions so that the surgeon can view the inside of the body on a TV monitor.

The surgeon then passes specially designed surgical instruments through the other incisions and carries out the procedure using the TV monitor to guide the instruments.
Laparoscopic surgery is usually associated with less blood loss during surgery and less pain and scarring following surgery. In most cases, time spent in hospital is less and overall recovery time from the operation is less than with conventional open surgery.