The first Diabetes Surgery Summit (DSS) was held in Rome, Italy in March 2007 with the participation of leading scholars in the fields of diabetes, surgery, basic science and public health.

The DSS was the first conference specifically aimed at establishing recommendations regarding gastrointestinal operations to intentionally treat T2DM and it is widely recognized as a seminal event for the development of the concept and practice of metabolic and diabetes surgery.

Given the substantial body of evidence now available, the overarching aim of the 2nd Diabetes Surgery Summit (DSS-II), was to assist leading diabetes organizations in the development of new guidelines for multimodality diabetes care. The new guidelines are aimed at guiding endocrinologists, primary care physicians and surgeons in the selection of candidates for surgical treatment and in the development of a diabetes-based model for pre and post operative care. A specific subject of the DSS-II was the development of a rational approach to the integration of pharmaceutical and surgical therapies to improve outcomes. DSS-II also succesfully crafted an agenda of research priorities and health policy initiatives aimed at improving access to surgical and interventional therapies.

The consensus development process of the DSS-II included two phases:

1. In the first phase, prior to the meeting in London, DSS delegates were asked to grade their support for a number of proposed guidelines via online questionnaires and interviews (Delphi-like process). To that end, the experts were provided with a summary of clinical evidence obtained through a systematic review and appraisal conducted by two independent moderators. This process generated a draft document with proposed guidelines and recommendations.

2. In the second phase of the DSS, proposed guidelines and their supporting evidence were presented during dedicated plenary sessions at the 3rd World Congress on Interventional Therapies of Type 2 Diabetes (WCITD 2015) in London, where they were critically discussed by other thought leaders in the field and open to input by the audience at large. The DSS expert panel then convened for a final a face-to-face meeting to define the final consensus document, which was designed to inform general practitioners, physicians, surgeons and policy makers. ​

The guidelines were endorsed by the American Diabetes Association (ADA) and over 50 international organizations.