Opioid Use After Gastric Bypass, Sleeve Gastrectomy or Intensive Lifestyle Intervention.

OBJECTIVE: To compare opioid use in patients with obesity treated with bariatric surgery versus adults with obesity who underwent intensive lifestyle modification. SUMMARY OF BACKGROUND DATA: Previous studies of opioid use after bariatric surgery have been limited by small sample sizes, short follow-up, and lack of control groups. METHODS: Nationwide matched cohort study including individuals from the Scandinavian Obesity Surgery Registry and the Itrim health database with individuals undergoing structured intensive lifestyle modification, between August 1, 2007 and September 30, 2015. Participants were matched on Body Mass Index, age, sex, education, previous opioid use, diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and psychiatric status (n = 30,359:21,356). Dispensed opioids were retrieved from the Swedish Prescribed Drug Register from 2 years before to up to 8 years after intervention. RESULTS: During the 2-year period before treatment, prevalence of individuals receiving ≥1 opioid prescription was identical in the surgery and lifestyle group. At 3 years, the prevalence of opioid prescriptions was 14.7% versus 8.9% in the surgery and lifestyle groups (mean difference 5.9%, 95% confidence interval 5.3-6.4) and at 8 years 16.9% versus 9.0% (7.9%, 6.8-9.0). The difference in mean daily dose also increased over time and was 3.55 mg in the surgery group versus 1.17 mg in the lifestyle group at 8 years (mean difference [adjusted for baseline dose] 2.30 mg, 95% confidence interval 1.61-2.98). CONCLUSIONS: Bariatric surgery was associated with a higher proportion of opioid users and larger total opioid dose, compared to actively treated obese individuals. These trends were especially evident in patients who received additional surgery during follow-up.

Impact of socioeconomic status on new chronic opioid use after gastric bypass surgery.

BACKGROUND: Socioeconomic status may influence weight loss, postoperative complications, and health-related quality of life after bariatric surgery. Chronic use of opioid analgesics is a known risk after bariatric surgery, but whether socioeconomic factors are associated with new chronic use of opioid analgesics has not been investigated in depth. OBJECTIVES: The aim of this study was to identify socioeconomic factors associated with the development of new chronic use of opioid analgesics after gastric bypass surgery. SETTING: All hospitals performing bariatric surgery in Sweden. METHODS: This was a retrospective cohort study with prospectively collected data including all primary gastric bypass procedures in Sweden between 2007 and 2015. Data were collected from the Scandinavian Obesity Surgery Registry, the Swedish Prescribed Drug Register, and Statistics Sweden. The primary outcome was new chronic opioid use. RESULTS: Of the 44,671 participants, 1438 patients became new chronic opioid users. Longer education (secondary education; odds ratio [OR] = .71; 95% CI, .62-.81) or higher education (OR = .45; 95% CI, .38-.53), higher disposable income (20th-50th percentile: OR = .75; 95% CI, .66-.85; 50th-80th percentile: OR = .50; 95% CI, .43-.58; and the highest 80th percentile: OR = .40; 95% CI, .32-.51) were significantly associated with lower risk for new chronic opioid use. Being a second-generation immigrant (OR = 1.54; 95% CI, 1.24-1.90), being on a disability pension or early retirement (OR = 3.04; 95% CI, 2.67-3.45), receiving social benefits (OR = 1.88; 95% CI, 1.59-2.22), being unemployed for <100 days (OR = 1.25; 95% CI, 1.08-1.45), being unemployed for >100 days (OR = 1.41; 95% CI, 1.16-1.71), and being divorced or a widow or widower (OR = 1.35; 95% CI, 1.17-1.55) were significantly associated with a higher risk for chronic opioid use. CONCLUSION: Given that long-term opioid use has detrimental effects after bariatric surgery, it is important that information and follow-up are optimized for patients with shorter education, lower income, and disability pension or early retirement because they are at an increased risk of new chronic opioid analgesics use.

Long-term Safety and Efficacy of Closure of Mesenteric Defects in Laparoscopic Gastric Bypass Surgery: A Randomized Clinical Trial.

Importance: Short-term and midterm data suggest that mesenteric defects closure during laparoscopic Roux-en-Y gastric bypass (LRYGB) surgery reduces the risk of internal herniation with small bowel obstruction (SBO) but may increase risk of kinking of the jejunojejunostomy in the early postoperative period. However, to our knowledge, there are no clinical trials reporting long-term results from this intervention in terms of risk for SBO or opioid use. Objective: To evaluate long-term safety and efficacy outcomes of closure of mesenteric defects during LRYGB. Design, Setting, and Participants: This randomized clinical trial with a 2-arm, parallel, open-label design included patients with severe obesity scheduled for LRYGB bariatric surgery at 12 centers in Sweden from May 1, 2010, through November 14, 2011, with 10 years of follow-up after the intervention. Interventions: During the operation, patients were randomly assigned 1:1 to closure of mesenteric defects beneath the jejunojejunostomy and at the Petersen space using nonabsorbable running sutures during LRYGB or to nonclosure. Main Outcome and Measures: The primary outcome was reoperation for SBO. New incident, chronic opioid use was a secondary end point as a measure of harm. Results: A total of 2507 patients (mean [SD] age, 41.7 [10.7] years; 1863 female [74.3%]) were randomly assigned to closure of mesenteric defects (n = 1259) or nonclosure (n = 1248). After censoring for death and emigration, 1193 patients in the closure group (94.8%) and 1198 in the nonclosure group (96.0%) were followed up until the study closed. Over a median follow-up of 10 years (IQR, 10.0-10.0 years), a reoperation for SBO from day 31 to 10 years after surgery was performed in 185 patients with nonclosure (10-year cumulative incidence, 14.9%; 95% CI, 13.0%-16.9%) and in 98 patients with closure (10-year cumulative incidence, 7.8%; 95% CI, 6.4%-9.4%) (subhazard ratio [SHR], 0.42; 95% CI, 0.32-0.55). New incident chronic opioid use was seen among 175 of 863 opioid-naive patients with nonclosure (10-year cumulative incidence, 20.4%; 95% CI, 17.7%-23.0%) and 166 of 895 opioid-naive patients with closure (10-year cumulative incidence, 18.7%; 95% CI, 16.2%-21.3%) (SHR, 0.90; 95% CI, 0.73-1.11). Conclusions and Relevance: This randomized clinical trial found long-term reduced risk of SBO after mesenteric defects closure in LRYGB. The findings suggest that routine use of this procedure during LRYGB should be considered. Trial Registration: ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT01137201.

Use of Opioid Analgesics Before and After Gastric Bypass Surgery in Sweden: a Population-Based Study.

BACKGROUND: Little is known regarding the use of opioid analgesics among patients who have undergone bariatric surgery. The Roux-en-Y gastric bypass (RYGB) procedure has been shown to significantly increase the rate of absorption of and exposure to morphine, raising concerns regarding the potentially increased risk of side-effects and the development of substance-use disorder. OBJECTIVES: The aim of this study was to describe the pattern of opioid use over time following RYGB and to see if the pattern differs between patients with a high opioid consumption (HOC) prior to surgery and those with a low consumption (LOC). SETTING: University Hospital of Örebro, Sweden. METHODS: The study was a descriptive retrospective population-based cohort study where two registers with complete coverage were cross-matched. RESULTS: The study population comprised 35,612 persons (1628 HOC, and 33,984 LOC). After surgery, the number of HOC patients increased to 2218. Mean daily opioid consumption in the total population and the LOC group increased after surgery (p < .0005). In the HOC group, there was no difference between mean daily consumption before and after surgery. CONCLUSION: In this nationwide study, we have showed that there is an increase in consumption of opioid analgesics after gastric bypass surgery in Sweden. The increase in the number of individuals with high opioid consumption in the total population was mainly due to an increase in the group of patients with a low consumption prior to surgery.