Promises and ethical pitfalls of surgical innovation: the case of bariatric surgery

The last two decades have seen remarkable advances in and acceptance of bariatric surgery. These advances include quality assurance, certification of surgeons and their institutions and the development of national bariatric registries. Yet, in spite of these advances, an urgent need to improve ethical standards in bariatric surgery remains. In particular, surgical innovation must be subjected to adequate scrutiny and sufficient safeguards. New procedures and the processes by which they are assessed should be subject to review and approval by the ethics committees operating under clearly defined guidelines. The public must be able to have confidence that the surgery itself, and the innovative practices that are introduced within it, are not subject to distortions associated with personal, wider professional, industry or institutional interests.