Radical Weight Loss Surgery

Doctors at West Virginia University Hospital say they may have cracked the weight loss code.

The groundbreaking procedure—deep brain stimulation surgery—has been used to treat Parkinson's symptoms for more than a decade, but now obese patients are signing up.

On February 3, 2009, Carol became the second person in the United States to have this experimental brain surgery to help control her weight. "I've tried everything else," she says. "I really believe that it's got something to do with the brain."

The three-hour procedure, which is still in trials, is performed while the patient is fully awake. "The brain feels no pain," Dr. Oz says.