Sponsored placement is separate from patient ratings. A community score is not a clinical quality measure.
What appears first?
Selected advertisers appear first in directory listings, including matching filtered results. They are labeled Sponsored placement and do not receive a community rank number in the sponsored position. Administrators choose the order within the surgeon and center advertising groups. Surgeon sponsors precede center sponsors in the combined view.
How are the remaining profiles ordered?
The default organic order uses the average of approved, top-level on-site reviews with a valid 1–5 rating. Ties use rating count, then name. Unrated profiles follow alphabetically. Community ranks are calculated separately for surgeons and centers. Unrated comments and replies remain visible but do not affect the average. Most-reviewed and alphabetical sorts apply below matching sponsored profiles.
What does sponsorship change?
Advertising changes placement, not the underlying review score or community rank. Sponsored cards link to the provider profile. They also appear above Patient Reviews and in the sidebar on other profiles. A sponsored placement is not a clinical endorsement.
External reviews and small samples
External reviews are attributed summaries, not on-site submissions. Ratings from different platforms are not combined. The number of cited summaries is not a platform’s total review count. Reviews may overlap across platforms. Fewer than five on-site ratings are marked as a small sample.
Ownership
Renew Bariatrics owns this directory and is a listed advertiser. The directory is not independent of Renew. Ownership is disclosed here and through the footer’s About link.
Affiliations and freshness
Programs, operating facilities and consultation offices are distinguished. Current, previous and unconfirmed affiliations include sources where available. Source checking does not independently verify credentials, privileges, outcomes or availability. Confirm the named surgeon and hospital for the actual procedure date.