ABSTRACT
Bariatric and metabolic surgery is an effective treatment for obesity and metabolic syndrome with definite results. In recent years, bariatric and metabolic surgery has developed rapidly, and the surgical indications and procedures have gradually matured. At the same time, the complications have also been widely discussed, including those specific to bariatric metabolic surgery and the risks common to gastrointestinal surgery, of which gastrointestinal leak is one of the most important and serious complications, which can be life-threatening in severe cases. This paper will review the mechanisms, clinical manifestations, diagnostic strategies, prevention, and treatment advances related to gastrointestinal leak after bariatric metabolic surgery based on the two major procedures that cause gastrointestinal leak, namely, staple line leak after laparoscopic sleeve gastrectomy and gastrojejunostomy leak after laparoscopic Roux-en-Y gastric bypass.