Outcomes of 325 one anastomosis gastric bypass operations: an Australian case series.

BACKGROUND: The One Anastomosis Gastric Bypass (OAGB) is a relatively novel procedure. Studies have demonstrated that it is at least as effective as other bariatric procedures but with fewer major complications and shorter operating time, yet OAGB is performed less partially due to a paucity of supportive evidence. We report the outcomes of a prospectively maintained database of patients undergoing laparoscopic OAGB. METHODS: All OAGB procedures performed by two surgeons across two hospitals from 2016 to 2019 were recorded in a prospectively maintained database. Patients with at least 1 year of follow up were included in this study and missing data was obtained from patient records. The primary outcome was percentage excess weight loss (EWL). The secondary outcome was surgical complication rate. RESULTS: Three hundred and twenty-five patients with a mean pre-operative body mass index of 43.3 kg/m2 were included. The majority (85.2%) had a biliopancreatic limb length of 150 cm. The median EWL was 74.2% and 79.4% of patients achieved at least 50% EWL. There were no deaths, the overall re-operation rate was 4.9% and 1.9% of patients developed stomal ulcers. Seven patients went on to have a Roux-en-Y conversion predominantly for symptomatic reflux. CONCLUSION: OAGB leads to excellent weight loss and is at least as safe as more commonly performed procedures, it may be a suitable treatment for a greater number of patients than it is being offered to at present.

Tweeting the meeting: an analysis of Twitter activity at the Royal Australasian College of Surgeons Annual Scientific Congress from 2015 to 2018.

BACKGROUND: Twitter has been shown to expand the audience and impact of material discussed at medical conferences, however, this phenomenon has not been analysed at the Royal Australasian College of Surgeons Annual Scientific Congress. The purpose of this study is to document the amount of Twitter activity at the Annual Scientific Congress, and to describe the way delegates use Twitter. METHODS: The number of tweets, retweets and contributors from the 2015 to 2018 congresses were determined using the Twitter advanced search function. Tweets were categorized broadly as academic, social or promotional. Union Metrics, an online software, was used to calculate estimates of impact including impressions and reach at the 2018 congress. Popular topics of discussion at all congresses were defined and counted. RESULTS: Twelve thousand five hundred and eight-six tweets were created with the official hashtag at the time of the four congresses. Activity increased over time except in the number of original tweets between the 2016 and 2018 congresses. Sixty-six percent of the tweets were directly related to congress content, and 23% were social in nature. At the 2018 congress, 16-34% of contributors were matched with a congress delegate. CONCLUSION: The tweets analysed were mainly informative. Twitter expanded the audience for material discussed at the Annual Scientific Congresses, and the amount of Twitter activity generally increased. It is in the interest of conference organizers to encourage and regulate Twitter use for maximum effectiveness because it is a powerful tool and use is likely to continue increasing in future.