Girl Recovering After Obesity Surgery Changes

Surgeons operating on an obese Texas girl with an unusual malady had to change strategy during the procedure, but they say Alexis Shapiro can still look forward to a "new normal" and a healthier weight, reports NBC News. Surgeons intended to perform a gastric bypass on the 12-year-old, but they switched to something called a sleeve gastrectomy when they discovered that her liver was bigger and fattier than expected. Doctors removed about 80% of her stomach in the procedure.

"It's not disappointing at all," said one of her doctors. "Our goal is do to a safe operation under circumstances that are not always 100% predictable." Alexis, who has felt constantly hungry for more than two years because of complications from brain surgery, might be able to have the gastric bypass in the future. The switch was known to the public instantly because Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center actually live-tweeted the operation. (You can revisit the tweets here via the Cincinnati Enquirer.)