[1] First introduced in 1962 by Professor Henry Buchwald of the University of Minnesota,[2] the procedure is used to treat a number of hyperlipidemias including familial hypercholesterolemia.
The trial ran between 1975 and 1983 and included 838 men who had survived a heart attack.
This trial initially failed to show any benefit on mortality, but in 1998 follow-up results indicated that in addition to its known benefit on cholesterol levels and disease events it had also decreased mortality in the treatment group.
[5] Ileal bypass surgery was mainly performed prior to the introduction of effective oral medication for the most common hypercholesterolemias.
[7] As with any ileal resection, a possible complication is mild steatorrhea due to a reduced uptake of bile acids by the ileum.