Heterogeneity of weight loss after gastric bypass, sleeve gastrectomy, and adjustable gastric banding.

BACKGROUND: Laparoscopic Roux-en-Y gastric bypass, laparoscopic sleeve gastrectomy, and laparoscopic adjustable gastric banding all lead to substantial weight loss in obese patients. Long-term weight loss can be highly variable beyond 1-year postsurgery. This study examines and compares the frequency distribution of weight loss and lack of treatment effect rates after laparoscopic Roux-en-Y gastric bypass, laparoscopic sleeve gastrectomy, and laparoscopic adjustable gastric banding. METHODS: A total of 1,331 consecutive patients at a single academic institution were reviewed from a prospectively collected database. Preoperative data collected included demographics, body mass index, and percent excess weight loss. Postoperative BMI and %EWL were collected at 12, 24, and 36 months. Percent excess weight loss was analyzed by the percentiles of excess weight lost, and the distribution of percent excess weight loss was evaluated in 10% increments. Lack of a successful treatment effect was defined as <25% excess weight loss. RESULTS: Of the 1,331 patients, 72.4% (963) underwent laparoscopic Roux-en-Y gastric bypass, 18.3% (243) laparoscopic sleeve gastrectomy, and 9.4%(125) laparoscopic adjustable gastric banding. Mean percent excess weight loss was greatest for laparoscopic Roux-en-Y gastric bypass, followed by laparoscopic sleeve gastrectomy, and then by laparoscopic adjustable gastric banding at every time point: at 2 years mean percent excess weight loss was 77.9± 24.4 for laparoscopic Roux-en-Y gastric bypass, 50.8 ± 25.8 for laparoscopic sleeve gastrectomy, and 40.8± 25.9 for laparoscopic adjustable gastric banding (P < .0001). The rates of a successful treatment effect s for laparoscopic Roux-en-Y gastric bypass, laparoscopic sleeve gastrectomy, and laparoscopic adjustable gastric banding were 0.9%, 5.2%, and 24.3% at 1 year; 0.3%, 11.1%, and 26.0% at 2 years; and 1.0%, 25.3%, and 30.2% at 3 years. At 1 year, the odds ratio of lack of a successful treatment effect of laparoscopic sleeve gastrectomy versus laparoscopic Roux-en-Y gastric bypass was 6.305 (2.125-19.08; P = .0004), the odds ratio for laparoscopic adjustable gastric banding versus laparoscopic Roux-en-Y gastric bypass was 36.552 (15.64-95.71; P < .0001), and the odds ratio for laparoscopic adjustable gastric banding versus laparoscopic sleeve gastrectomy was 5.791 (2.519-14.599; P < .0001). At 2 years, the odds ratio for laparoscopic sleeve gastrectomy versus laparoscopic Roux-en-Y gastric bypass increased to 70.7 (9.4-531.7; P < .0001), the odds ratio for laparoscopic adjustable gastric banding versus laparoscopic Roux-en-Y gastric bypass increased to 128.1 (16.8-974.3; P < .0001), and the odds ratio for laparoscopic adjustable gastric banding versus laparoscopic sleeve gastrectomy decreased to 1.8 (0.9-3.6; P = .09). CONCLUSION: This study emphasizes the existing variability in weight loss across bariatric procedures as well as in the lack of a treatment effect for each procedure. Although laparoscopic adjustable gastric banding has the greatest rate of a lack of a successful treatment effect, the rate remained stable over 3 years postoperatively. Laparoscopic sleeve gastrectomy showed a doubling in the rate of a lack of a successful treatment effect every year reaching 25% at year 3. The rates for lack of a successful treatment effect for laparoscopic Roux-en-Y gastric bypass remained stable at about 1% for the first 3 years postoperatively.

Mammography before and after bariatric surgery.

BACKGROUND: Morbidly obese women are at increased risk for breast cancer, and the majority of surgical weight-loss patients are older than 40 years old. OBJECTIVE: The purpose of the present study was to determine the technical and interpretive changes in mammography following bariatric surgery. SETTING: Accredited Academic Hospital. METHODS: Two breast-imaging radiologists reviewed screening mammograms performed on 10 morbidly obese women undergoing bariatric surgery both pre- and postoperatively. American College of Radiology Breast Imaging Reporting and Data System (ACR BI-RADS) density, imaging quality measurements, compression force, breast thickness, pectoral nipple line (PNL) length, and x-ray beam kilovoltage (kVp) and miliamperes per second (mAs) were recorded. RESULTS: The average patient age was 56 years old, with mean age at menarche of 13 years old; 70% of patients were postmenopausal (average age 49 years at menopause) and 50% had a family history of breast cancer. There was a significant reduction in both BMI (-13.2 kg/m2, P<.01) and waist circumference (-32.0 cm, P<.01) following bariatric surgery. There was a significant reduction in breast thickness (-23.8 mm), reduction in PNL length (-1.9 cm), reduction in kVp (-1.2), and reduction in mAs (-16.7) even though there was no compression force change in pre- and postoperative mammograms detected. All breast densities were fatty or scattered though there were more scattered and fewer fatty images after surgery (P = .002). CONCLUSION: Morbidly obese women can undergo quality mammograms before and after bariatric surgery; however, weight loss after bariatric surgery leads to only slightly denser mammograms. Furthermore, weight loss reduces mammographic radiation doses.

Characterizing Readmissions After Bariatric Surgery.

INTRODUCTION: Readmissions are an important quality metric for surgery. Here, we compare characteristics of readmissions across laparoscopic Roux-en-Y gastric bypass (LRYGB), sleeve gastrectomy (LSG), and adjustable gastric band (LAGB). METHODS: Demographic, intraoperative, anthropometric, and laboratory data were prospectively obtained for 1775 patients at a single academic institution. All instances of readmissions within 1 year were recorded. Data were analyzed using STATA, release 12. RESULTS: For the 1775 patients, 113 (6.37 %) were readmitted. Mean time to readmission was 52.1 days. Of all the readmissions, 64.6 % were within 30 days, 22.1 % from 30 to 90 days, 1.77 % from 90 to 180 days, and 11.5 % from 180 to 365 days. Incidence of 30-day readmissions varied across surgeries (LRYGB: 7.17 %; LAGB: 3.05 %; LSG: 4.25 %, p = 0.04). Time to readmission varied as well, with 90.0 % of LSG and 80.0 % of LABG patients within the first 30 days, versus 60.8 % of LRYGB (p = 0.02). The most common causes of readmissions were gastrointestinal issues related to index procedure (34.5 %) and did not vary across surgeries. In multivariable logistic regression, index hospital length of stay (LOS) was associated with readmission (OR = 1.07, 95 % CI 1.02-1.13, p = 0.01). CONCLUSIONS: Readmissions after bariatric surgery are associated with high index hospital LOS, and a measureable proportion of procedure-related readmissions can occur up to 1 year, especially for LRYGB.

National prevalence, causes, and risk factors for bariatric surgery readmissions.

BACKGROUND: Readmissions are often used as a quality metric particularly in bariatric surgery. METHODS: Laparoscopic Roux en Y gastric bypass, laparoscopic adjustable gastric banding, and laparoscopic sleeve gastrectomy were identified using Current Procedure Terminology codes in the 2012 National Surgical Quality Improvement Program public use file. RESULTS: A total of 18,296 patients were included, 10,080 (55.1%) were laparoscopic Roux en Y gastric bypass, 1,829 (10.0%) were laparoscopic adjustable gastric banding, and 6,387 (34.9%) were laparoscopic sleeve gastrectomy. Among all patients, 955 (5.22%) were readmitted. Patients with readmissions had a higher proportion of body mass index greater than 50 (30.2% vs 24.6%, P < .001), higher index operative time (132 minutes vs 115, P < .001) and greater proportion with length of stay greater than 4 days (9.57% vs 3.36%, P < .001). Readmitted patients were more likely to have diabetes (31.1% vs 27.7%, P = .02), chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (2.63% vs 1.72%, P = .04), and hypertension (54.5% vs 50.8%, P = .03). Overall, 40.6% of readmitted patients had a complication. Common readmissions were gastrointestinal-related (45.0%), dietary (33.5%), and bleeding (6.57%). Readmission was independently associated with African-American race (odds ratio [OR] = 1.53, P = .02), complication (OR = 11.3, 95%, P < .001), and resident involvement (OR = .53, P = .04). CONCLUSIONS: A 30-day readmission after bariatric surgery is prevalent and closely associated with complications.

Do adverse childhood experiences affect surgical weight loss outcomes?

Bariatric surgery is an effective and enduring treatment for obesity; however, variation in weight loss may occur following surgery. Many factors beyond technical considerations may influence postoperative outcomes. A better understanding of the influence of adverse childhood experiences (ACE) on surgical weight loss may improve preoperative care. Demographic and preoperative and postoperative data were prospectively obtained for 223 patients undergoing bariatric surgery. All cases were completed laparoscopically without serious complication. Patients completed the ACE questionnaire, which assesses childhood maltreatment. Patients had an average age of 48 years and 77 % were female. There was a significant reduction from preoperative to 12-month postoperative BMI (45 to 31 kg/m(2), p ≤ 0.01). The average ACE score was 2.9 and these patients were more likely than population norms to have an ACE score ≥4 (35.9 vs. 12.5 %, p < 0.001). There was a positive correlation between the number of preoperative comorbidities and preoperative ACE score (R = 0.112, p = 0.09). Patients with a high ACE score (≥6) vs. patients low ACE scores had a higher postoperative BMI at 6-months (36.9 vs. 33.4 kg/m(2), p = 0.03) and 12-months postoperatively (34.5 vs. 30.5 kg/m(2), p = 0.07). High ACE patients had higher total cholesterol (191 vs. 169 mg/dL, p = 0.02) and LDL cholesterol (116 vs. 94 mg/dL, p = 0.02) than low ACE patients 12-months postoperatively. A high preoperative ACE score decreases weight loss following bariatric surgery and may warrant an increased preoperative counseling.

The Influence of Resected Gastric Weight upon Weight Loss after Sleeve Gastrectomy.

Bariatric surgery is an effective and enduring treatment for obesity. Sleeve gastrectomy (SG) has emerged as an increasingly prevalent surgical intervention. Further investigation is required to determine optimal standardization of SG. Data were collected prospectively for 64 patients who underwent a laparoscopic vertical SG between December 2010 and February 2013 at a single academic institution. Demographic, intraoperative, and postoperative (postop) data were collected for all patients including weighing each resected stomach. The total resected gastric weight varied widely. Preoperatively, patients in the upper tercile for resected gastric weight were more likely to be male (lower 10%, middle 23%, upper 52%, P = 0.006) and had greater initial weights (lower 255.9%, middle 245.1%, upper 280.0%, P = 0.019). The resected gastric weight (g) varied by tercile (mean of all, 131.24 ± 39.8; lower, 93.9 ± 10.9; middle, 127.4 ± 11.7; upper 172.7 ± 37.9, P = 0.000). Patients were followed for 1-year postop with follow-up data for 94 per cent (60/64) of participants. Per cent excess weight loss (EWL) was obtained at three, six, and 12 months postop. At 12 months, there was a trend toward increased per cent EWL in the upper tercile (lower 61.1%, middle 54.1%, upper 90.5%, P = 0.057). In conclusion, while the amount of gastric sleeve resected can vary, this study shows that intraoperative assessment of resected sleeve weight can help evaluate adequacy of resection. Improved 12-month per cent EWL in patients with greater resected tissue demonstrate potentially improved outcomes.

Mesenteric defect closure in laparoscopic Roux-en-Y gastric bypass: a randomized controlled trial.

INTRODUCTION: Internal herniation is a potential complication following laparoscopic Roux-en-Y gastric bypass (LRYGB). Previous studies have shown that closure of mesenteric defects after LRYGB may reduce the incidence of internal herniation. However, controversy remains as to whether mesenteric defect closure is necessary to decrease the incidence of internal hernias after LRYGB. This study aims to determine if jejeunal mesenteric defect closure reduces incidence of internal hernias and other complications in patients undergoing LRYGB. METHODS: 105 patients undergoing laparoscopic antecolic RYGB were randomized into two groups: closed mesenteric defect (n = 50) or open mesenteric defect (n = 55). Complication rates were obtained from the medical record. Patients were followed up to 3 years post-operatively. Patients also completed the gastrointestinal quality of life index (GI QoL) pre-operatively and 12 months post-operatively. Outcome measures included: incidence of internal hernias, complications, readmissions, reoperations, GI QoL scores, and percent excess weight loss (%EWL). RESULTS: Pre-operatively, there were no significant differences between the two groups. The closed group had a longer operative time (closed-153 min, open-138 min, p = 0.073). There was one internal hernia in the open group. There was no significant difference at 12 months for decrease in BMI (closed-15.9, open-16.3 kg/m(2), p = 0.288) or %EWL (closed-75.3%, open-69.0%, p = 0.134). There was no significant difference between the groups in incidence of internal hernias and general complications post-operatively. Both groups showed significantly improved GI QoL index scores from baseline to 12 months post-surgery, but there were no significant differences at 12 months between groups in total GI QoL (closed-108, open-112, p = 0.440). CONCLUSIONS: In this study, closure or non-closure of the jejeunal mesenteric defect following LRYGB appears to result in equivalent internal hernia and complication rates. High index of suspicion should be maintained whenever internal hernia is expected after LRYGB.