Teresa LaMasters, MD, FACS, FASMBS, DABOM – Medical Director Bariatric Surgery, UnityPoint Clinic Weight Loss Specialists; Bariatric SurgeonDr. LaMasters received her medical degree from the University of South Dakota School of Medicine in 2001. She completed her residency in General Surgery at the University of Kansas School of Medicine – Wichita in 2006. She then went on to complete advanced training with a fellowship in Minimally Invasive Surgery with an emphasis in Bariatric and Robotic Surgery in 2007 at Stanford University in California. She has additional expertise in medical management of obesity and completed her Board Certification in Obesity Medicine obtaining her DABOM in 2019.She leads a very busy, successful practice with high quality outcomes and has performed over 3000 bariatric surgeries in the past 14+ years. UnityPoint Clinic Weight Loss Specialists in West Des Moines, Iowa and Iowa Methodist Medical Center an MBSAQIP Comprehensive Accredited Center.Dr. LaMasters currently serves as a Secretary Treasurer for the Executive Council for the American Society for Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery (ASMBS) and will proceed on to serve as President elect in June 2021 and then President of ASMBS in 2022. She has previously served as the co-chair for the State Chapter Committee and Access to Care Committees for ASMBS. She is the Executive Council liaison for the Diversity and Inclusion Committee, and Public Education Committee for ASMBS. She is Past President of the Iowa State Chapter of the ASMBS. She serves on the Standards and Verification committee for the MBSAQIP and the American College of Surgeons. She serves as a site surveyor and coach for quality improvement. She is passionate about high quality outcomes and continuous quality improvement. She is an invited expert speaker for surgical and medical treatment of the disease of obesity both in the USA and Internationally.
Selected publications from PubMed
Multisociety Clinical Practice Guidance for the Safe Use of Glucagon-like Peptide-1 Receptor Agonists in the Perioperative Period.
Kindel TL, Wang AY, Wadhwa A, Schulman AR, Sharaiha RZ, Kroh M, Ghanem OM, Levy S, Joshi GP, LaMasters TL, American Gastroenterological Association, American Society for Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery, American Society of Anesthesiologists, International Society of Perioperative Care of Patients with Obesity, Society of American Gastrointestinal and Endoscopic Surgeons
Clin Gastroenterol Hepatol. 2025 Nov;23(12):2083-2085 doi: 10.1016/j.cgh.2024.10.003.
Unveiling the cost-effectiveness of bariatric surgery: insights from a matched cohort study.
Lloyd SJ, Wall-Wieler E, Liu Y, Zheng F, LaMasters T
Surg Obes Relat Dis. 2025 Sep;21(9):987-995 doi: 10.1016/j.soard.2025.04.004.
Multi-society clinical practice guidance for the safe use of glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonists in the perioperative period.
Kindel TL, Wang AY, Wadhwa A, Schulman AR, Sharaiha RZ, Kroh M, Ghanem OM, Levy S, Joshi GP, LaMasters T, Representing the American Gastroenterological Association, American Society for Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery, American Society of Anesthesiologists, International Society of Perioperative Care of Patients with Obesity, and the Society of American Gastrointestinal and Endoscopic Surgeons
Surg Endosc. 2025 Jan;39(1):180-183 doi: 10.1007/s00464-024-11263-2.
Multisociety clinical practice guidance for the safe use of glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonists in the perioperative period.
Kindel TL, Wang AY, Wadhwa A, Schulman AR, Sharaiha RZ, Kroh M, Ghanem OM, Levy S, Joshi GP, LaMasters TL, American Gastroenterological Association, American Society for Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery, American Society of Anesthesiologists, International Society of Perioperative Care of Patients with Obesity, Society of American Gastrointestinal and Endoscopic Surgeons
Surg Obes Relat Dis. 2024 Dec;20(12):1183-1186 doi: 10.1016/j.soard.2024.08.033.
Scientific evidence for the updated guidelines on indications for metabolic and bariatric surgery (IFSO/ASMBS).
De Luca M, Shikora S, Eisenberg D, Angrisani L, Parmar C, Alqahtani A, Aminian A, Aarts E, Brown WA, Cohen RV, Di Lorenzo N, Faria SL, Goodpaster KPS, Haddad A, Herrera MF, Rosenthal R, Himpens J, Iossa A, Kermansaravi M, Kow L, Kurian M, Chiappetta S, LaMasters T, Mahawar K, Merola G, Nimeri A, O'Kane M, Papasavas PK, Piatto G, Ponce J, Prager G, Pratt JSA, Rogers AM, Salminen P, Steele KE, Suter M, Tolone S, Vitiello A, Zappa M, Kothari SN
Surg Obes Relat Dis. 2024 Nov;20(11):991-1025 doi: 10.1016/j.soard.2024.05.009.
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