Serum vitamin D increases with weight loss in obese subjects 6 months after Roux-en-Y gastric bypass.

BACKGROUND: Malabsorptive surgical procedures lead to deficiencies in fat-soluble vitamins. However, results concerning serum vitamin D (25OHD) after gastric bypass (GBP) are controversial. The aim of the study was to assess the influence of GBP on 25OHD and calcium metabolism. METHODS: Parameters of calcium metabolism were evaluated in 202 obese subjects before and 6 months after GBP. Thirty of them were matched for age, gender, weight, skin color, and season with 30 subjects who underwent sleeve gastrectomy (SG). A multivitamin preparation that provides 200 to 500 IU vitamin D3 per day was systematically prescribed after surgery. RESULTS: In the 202 patients after GBP, serum 25OHD significantly increased from 13.4 ± 9.1 to 22.8 ± 11.3 ng/ml (p < 0.0001), whereas parathyroid hormone (PTH) did not change. Despite a decrease in calcium intake (p < 0.0001) and urinary calcium/creatinine ratio (p = 0.015), serum calcium increased after GBP (p < 0.0001). Preoperatively, 91 % of patients had 25OHD insufficiency (< 30 ng/ml), 80% deficiency (< 20 ng/ml), and 19% secondary hyperparathyroidism (> 65 pg/ml) vs. 76, 44, and 17%, respectively, following GBP. Serum 25OHD was negatively correlated with BMI at 6 months after GBP (R = -0.299, p < 0.0001). In the two groups of 30 subjects, serum 25OHD and PTH did not differ at 6 months after GBP or SG. CONCLUSIONS: At 6 months after GBP, serum 25OHD significantly increased in subjects supplemented with multivitamins containing low doses of vitamin D. These data suggest that weight loss at 6 months after surgery has a greater influence on vitamin D status than malabsorption induced by GBP.

Use of an omega-3 fatty acid-based emulsion in the treatment of parenteral nutrition-induced cholestasis in patients with microvillous inclusion disease.

Microvillous inclusion disease is a congenital intestinal epithelial cell disorder leading to lifelong intestinal failure. In this report, we discuss the use of a fish oil-based lipid emulsion in the treatment of 3 patients with microvillous inclusion disease who developed parenteral nutrition-associated liver disease.

Brown bowel syndrome secondary to jejunoileal bypass: the first case report.

A 58-year-old woman with a surgical history of jejunoileal bypass in 1980 for weight reduction sought medical attention with multiple complaints. The patient had not been taking any nutritional supplements since her bypass surgery, 26 years previously. She was found to have osteomalacia, chronic diarrhea, secondary hyperparathyroidism, and hyperoxaluria with a frequent history of nephrolithiasis. Because of her severe osteodystrophy and metabolic complications, reversal of her jejunoileal bypass was recommended. Reversal of the jejunoileal bypass with a sleeve gastrectomy was performed. Laparotomy revealed brown discoloration of the entire alimentary limb with atrophy of the bypassed intestinal limb. Histologic examination of the resected small bowel demonstrated brown pigment deposits within smooth muscle cells of the bowel wall. The pigment stained positive with Fontana-Masson most likely representing lipofuscin. We report a case of brown bowel syndrome complicating jejunoileal bypass, the first case reported in the literature to the best of our knowledge.

High-output stoma after small-bowel resections for Crohn's disease.

BACKGROUND: A 56-year-old Caucasian woman with a history of Crohn's disease and multiple bowel resections resulting in a loop jejunostomy was referred to our Nutritional Unit from a neighboring district general hospital for further management. She was first seen in October 2001, and initial assessment indicated that she was malnourished with fluid depletion, evidenced by the high volume of stomal fluid produced. There had been no sudden change in her medication, her Crohn's disease was quiescent and there was no evidence of any intra-abdominal sepsis. Despite a high calorific intake through her diet, she continued to lose weight. INVESTIGATIONS: Serum urea and electrolytes; magnesium; C-reactive protein; full blood count; urinary spot sodium; anthropometric measurements. DIAGNOSIS: High-output stoma with malabsorption as a consequence of repeated small-bowel surgery. MANAGEMENT: The patient was treated with oral hypotonic fluid restriction (0.5 l/day), 2 l of oral glucose-saline solution per day, high-dose oral antimotility agents (loperamide and codeine phosphate), a proton-pump inhibitor (omeprazole) and oral magnesium replacement. A year later, the patient's loop jejunostomy was closed and an end ileostomy fashioned, bringing an additional 35 cm of small bowel into continuity; macronutrient absorption improved but her problem of dehydration was only slightly reduced. She was stabilized on a twice-weekly subcutaneous magnesium and saline infusion and daily oral 1alpha-hydroxycholecalciferol.

Congenital short bowel syndrome with malrotation.

Congenital short bowel syndrome (SBS) associated with malrotation and malabsorption is a very rare condition. We report on an infant girl with congenital SBS associated with malrotation and malabsorption. No polyhydraminos was noted during the regular prenatal examination. Protracted postnatal postprandial vomiting with progressive failure to thrive was noted. A laparotomy showed the small bowel was only about 20 cm in length. She eventually survived with short-term parenteral nutrition and use of oral L-glutamine supplementation. To our knowledge, this might be the shortest length of bowel loop ever reported. Currently, she is 15 months of age with a body weight of about 7 kg and good development.

Surgical therapy of the short bowel syndrome.

Patients with the short bowel syndrome should be managed initially by giving total parenteral nutrition and by maximizing the function of the remaining intestine. Enteral feedings should be instituted as soon as the patient stabilizes, usually after 2 to 4 weeks. The gastric hypersecretion that accompanies the syndrome can usually be controlled with an H2-receptor blocker. In those patients who fail to recover adequate digestion and absorption after 6 months to 1 year, operations to improve absorption should be considered. The reversed intestinal segment and the intestinal lengthening procedures are most often employed, but neither type of operation can be recommended without reservation. Newer procedures, such as growing new intestinal mucosa on serosal patches, intestinal pacing, and intestinal transplantation may play a role in future therapies. At present, long-term parenteral nutrition remains the cornerstone of therapy.