A Mexican dubbed as the world's most obese man died of heart attack despite undergoing weight loss surgery. Andrés Moreno, 38 years old, died on Christmas Day while in an ambulance travelling to the hospital in Ciudad Obregón, his home city in the northern Mexican state of Sonora.
Moreno underwent weight loss surgery known as biliopancreatic diversion with duodenal switch in October at Arboledas Hospital's Gastric Bypass Center in Guadalajara, Mexico. He suffered from a heart attack that doctors said was unexpected.
Weighing 978 pounds at his most obese in 2014, he lost more than 132 pounds since the operation and his hypertension (high blood pressure) and blood glucose levels were under control. Prior to the surgery, he had lost a lot of weight as he was about 700 pounds then.
"It was something we had not considered because of all the kilos he had lost due to the surgery, which would allow him to reduce the risk of a heart attack," Dr. Jose Castañeda, Moreno's physician said in a statement.
Despite losing all those weight, Moreno was still considered morbidly obese because he weighed approximately 572 pounds two months after the operation. His weight loss was not enough to save him from this type of complication.
At exactly one month before his untimely death, Moreno underwent an emergency operation to remove a hernia that affected his intestines. Castañeda said that he contacts Moreno every three days for monitoring. On Christmas Eve, Moreno did not complain of any discomfort that is why his heart attack was unexpected.
"Andrés died at 8.30am on Christmas Day in an ambulance from a heart attack as he was taken from his house to San Jose Hospital," his friend, Carmen Palacios, said.
Moreno will be buried on Jan. 3, 2016 in Navojoa, Sonora, where he was born.
Moreno's goal was to live a normal life
Andrés Moreno Sepúlveda was an ex-police officer from Ciudad Obregón in Sonora who lost his job because of his weight. His mission was to lose weight and live a normal life. Weighing 978 pounds as his heaviest, he aims to weight at least 80 kilograms, which is the normal weight for his height.
Between 2014 and his operation in October, he lost more than 220 pounds and aims to shed twice that amount since his obesity has caused health complications. In recent years, he spent most of his days lying down on a bed designed to withstand his weight. He can't walk or do daily activities.
When he met Dr. Jose Castañeda, who will help him reduce his weight supposedly to a normal level, his chances of living a normal life was high. On Oct. 28, he underwent the weight loss surgery.
"Today I weigh 320 kilograms (705 pounds); in a year I've lost more than 100. The medicine is keeping me going but I'm tired from the operation. My partner separated from me six months ago because of my obesity. I just want to have a normal life - to be able to go outside, to run and walk," Moreno said after his operation.
He was born larger than other babies. He weighed 13 pounds and at the age of 10, he weighed 264.5 pounds, more than twice as large as a typical child at his age. His weight started ballooning after he was 20 years old until he reached a point when he can't stand, walk or even use the toilet anymore.
In fact, Moreno was the second Mexican holder of the Guinness World Record's fattest man. Manuel Uribe, who died at age 48, was once the fattest man alive in 2006. He weighed a staggering 1,230 pounds.
