Association of Bariatric Surgery Using Laparoscopic Banding, Roux-en-Y Gastric Bypass, or Laparoscopic Sleeve Gastrectomy vs Usual Care Obesity Management With All-Cause Mortality.

Importance: Bariatric surgery is an effective and safe approach for weight loss and short-term improvement in metabolic disorders such as diabetes. However, studies have been limited in most settings by lack of a nonsurgical group, losses to follow-up, missing data, and small sample sizes in clinical trials and observational studies. Objective: To assess the association of 3 common types of bariatric surgery compared with nonsurgical treatment with mortality and other clinical outcomes among obese patients. Design, Setting, and Participants: Retrospective cohort study in a large Israeli integrated health fund covering 54% of Israeli citizens with less than 1% turnover of members annually. Obese adult patients who underwent bariatric surgery between January 1, 2005, and December 31, 2014, were selected and compared with obese nonsurgical patients matched on age, sex, body mass index (BMI), and diabetes, with a final follow-up date of December 31, 2015. A total of 33 540 patients were included in this study. Exposures: Bariatric surgery (laparoscopic banding, Roux-en-Y gastric bypass, or laparoscopic sleeve gastrectomy) or usual care obesity management only (provided by a primary care physician and which may include dietary counseling and behavior modification). Main Outcomes and Measures: The primary outcome, all-cause mortality, matched and adjusted for BMI prior to surgery, age, sex, socioeconomic status, diabetes, hyperlipidemia, hypertension, cardiovascular disease, and smoking. Results: The study population included 8385 patients who underwent bariatric surgery (median age, 46 [IQR, 37-54] years; 5490 [65.5%] women; baseline median BMI, 40.6 [IQR, 38.5-43.7]; laparoscopic banding [n = 3635], gastric bypass [n = 1388], laparoscopic sleeve gastrectomy [n = 3362], and 25 155 nonsurgical matched patients (median age, 46 [IQR, 37-54] years; 16 470 [65.5%] women; baseline median BMI, 40.5 [IQR, 37.0-43.5]). The availability of follow-up data was 100% for all-cause mortality. There were 105 deaths (1.3%) among surgical patients during a median follow-up of 4.3 (IQR, 2.8-6.6) years (including 61 [1.7%] who underwent laparoscopic banding, 18 [1.3%] gastric bypass, and 26 [0.8%] sleeve gastrectomy), and 583 deaths (2.3%) among nonsurgical patients during a median follow-up of 4.0 (IQR, 2.6-6.2) years. The absolute difference was 2.51 (95% CI, 1.86-3.15) fewer deaths/1000 person-years in the surgical vs nonsurgical group. Adjusted hazard ratios (HRs) for mortality among nonsurgical vs surgical patients were 2.02 (95% CI, 1.63-2.52) for the entire study population; by surgical type, HRs were 2.01 (95% CI, 1.50-2.69) for laparoscopic banding, 2.65 (95% CI, 1.55-4.52) for gastric bypass, and 1.60 (95% CI, 1.02-2.51) for laparoscopic sleeve gastrectomy. Conclusions and Relevance: Among obese patients in a large integrated health fund in Israel, bariatric surgery using laparoscopic banding, gastric bypass, or laparoscopic sleeve gastrectomy, compared with usual care nonsurgical obesity management, was associated with lower all-cause mortality over a median follow-up of approximately 4.5 years. The evidence of this association adds to the limited literature describing beneficial outcomes of these 3 types of bariatric surgery compared with usual care obesity management alone.

How safe is metabolic/diabetes surgery?

Although recent studies have shown the impressive antidiabetic effects of laparoscopic Roux-en-Y gastric bypass (LRYGB), the safety profile of metabolic/diabetes surgery has been a matter of concern among patients and physicians. Data on patients with type 2 diabetes who underwent LRYGB or one of seven other procedures between January 2007 and December 2012 were retrieved from the American College of Surgeons National Surgical Quality Improvement Program database and compared. Of the 66 678 patients included, 16 509 underwent LRYGB. The composite complication rate of 3.4% after LRYGB was similar to those of laparoscopic cholecystectomy and hysterectomy. The mortality rate for LRYGB (0.3%) was similar to that of knee arthroplasty. Patients who underwent LRYGB had significantly better short-term outcomes in all examined variables than patients who underwent coronary bypass, infra-inguinal revascularization and laparoscopic colectomy. In conclusion, LRYGB can be considered a safe procedure in people with diabetes, with similar short-term morbidity to that of common procedures such as cholecystectomy and appendectomy and a mortality rate similar to that of knee arthroplasty. The mortality risk for LRYGB is one-tenth that of cardiovascular surgery and earlier intervention with metabolic surgery to treat diabetes may eliminate the need for some later higher-risk procedures to treat diabetes complications.

Obesity surgery mortality risk score for the prediction of complications after laparoscopic bariatric surgery.

INTRODUCTION: Morbimortality after bariatric surgery varies according to patient characteristics and associated comorbidities. The aim of this study was to evaluate the usefulness of the Obesity sugery mortality risk score scale (OS-MRS) to predict the risk of postoperative complications after bariatric surgery. METHODS: A retrospective study was performed of a prospective series of patients undergoing bariatric surgery in which the OS-MRS scale was applied preoperatively. Postoperative complications were classified as proposed by Dindo-Clavien. We analyzed the relationship between the categories of OS-MRS scale: A) low risk, B) intermediate risk, and C) high risk and the presence of complications. RESULTS: Between May 2008 and June 2012, 198 patients were included (85 [42.9%] after gastric bypass and 113 [57.1%] after sleeve gastrectomy). Using the OS-MRS scale, 124 patients were classified as class A (62.6%), 70 as class B (35.4%) and 4 as class C (2%). The overall morbidity rate was 12.6% (25 patients). A significant association between OS-MRS scale and rate of complications (7.3, 20 and 50%, respectively, P=.004) was demonstrated. The gastric bypass was associated with a higher complication rate than sleeve gastrectomy (P=.007). In multivariate analysis, OS-MRS scale and surgical technique were the only significant predictive factors. CONCLUSIONS: The OS-MRS scale is a useful tool to predict the risk of complications and can be used as a guide when choosing the type of bariatric surgery.

Perioperative risk factors for 30-day mortality after bariatric surgery: is functional status important?

BACKGROUND: Although the mortality from bariatric surgery is low, perioperative determinants of morbidity and mortality in the bariatric surgery population to date have not been fully defined. This study aimed to evaluate the factors capable of predicting perioperative mortality based on preoperative characteristics with a national patient sample. METHODS: From the American College of Surgeons National Surgical Quality Improvement Program (ACS-NSQIP) database, all the primary bariatric procedures performed between 2007 and 2009 were identified. Using univariate analysis, factors associated with increased perioperative (30-day) mortality were identified. Logistic regression was used to select correlates of 30-day mortality, which were subsequently integrated into a simplified clinical scoring system based on the number of comorbid risk factors. RESULTS: The study identified 44,408 patients (79 % women, 21 % men) with a mean age of 45 ± 11 years. The cumulative 30-day perioperative mortality rate was 0.14 %. The majority of the procedures performed included laparoscopic gastric bypass (54 %) followed by laparoscopic gastric banding (33 %) and open gastric bypass (7 %). Independent predictors associated with significantly increased mortality included age >45 years [adjusted odds ratio (AOR), 2.45], male gender (AOR = 1.77), a body mass index (BMI) of 50 kg/m(2) or higher (AOR, 2.48), open bariatric procedures (AOR, 2.34), diabetes (AOR, 2.88), functional status of total dependency before surgery (AOR, 27.6), prior coronary intervention (AOR, 2.66), dyspnea at preoperative evaluation (AOR, 4.64), more than 10 % unintentional weight loss in 6 months (AOR, 13.5), and bleeding disorder (AOR, 2.63). Ethnicity, hypertension, alcohol abuse, liver disease, and smoking had no significant association with mortality in this study. Risk stratification based on the number of preoperative comorbid factors showed an exponential increase in mortality as follows: 0-1 comorbidities (0.03 %), 2-3 comorbidities (0.16 %), and 4 comorbidities or more (7.4 %). CONCLUSION: This model provides a straightforward, precise, and easily applicable tool for identifying bariatric patients at low, intermediate, and high risk for in-hospital mortality. Notably, baseline functional status before surgery is the single most powerful predictor of perioperative survival and should be incorporated into risk stratification models.

Long-term prevention of mortality in morbid obesity through bariatric surgery. a systematic review and meta-analysis of trials performed with gastric banding and gastric bypass.

BACKGROUND: Bariatric surgery has been reported to reduce long-term mortality in operated participants in comparison with nonoperated participants. METHODS: We performed a systematic review and meta-analysis of clinical trials published as full articles dealing with cardiovascular (CV) mortality, all-cause mortality (noncardiovascular), and global mortality (sum of CV and all-cause mortality). Pooled-fixed effects of estimates of the risk of mortality in participants undergoing surgery were calculated compared with controls. RESULTS: Of 44,022 participants from 8 trials (14,052 undergoing surgery and 29,970 controls), death occurred in 3317 participants (400 in surgery, 2917 in controls); when the kind of death was specified, 321 CV deaths (118 in surgery, 203 in controls), and 523 all-cause deaths (218 in surgery, 305 in controls) occurred. Compared with controls, surgery was associated with a reduced risk of global mortality (OR = 0.55, CI, 0.49-0.63), of CV mortality (OR = 0.58, CI, 0.46-0.73), and of all-cause mortality (OR = 0.70, CI, 0.59-0.84).Data of all-cause mortality were not heterogeneous; heterogeneity of data of CV mortality decreased when studies were grouped according to size (large vs small studies). The reduction of risk was smaller in large than in small studies (OR = 0.61 vs 0.21, 0.63 vs 0.16, 0.74 vs 0.35 for global, CV, and all-cause mortality, respectively). The effect of gastric banding and gastric by-pass (3797 vs 10,255 interventions) was similar for global and all-cause mortality (OR = 0.57 vs 0.55, and 0.66 vs 0.70, respectively), different for CV mortality (OR = 0.71 vs 0.48). At meta-regression analysis, a trend for a decrease of global mortality (Log OR) linked to increasing BMI appeared. CONCLUSION: This meta-analysis indicates that (1) bariatric surgery reduces long-term mortality; (2) risk reduction is smaller in large than in small studies; and (3) both gastric banding and gastric by-pass reduce mortality with a greater effect of the latter on CV mortality.

Preoperative gastric conditioning in cervical gastroplasty.

To determine if ischemic conditioning of the stomach improves the morbidity, mortality, and the anastomotic failure in gastroplasties with cervical anastomosis. Analysis of all patients with indication for cervical gastroplasty during the period of study. In all cases, ischemic conditioning was performed by selective embolization. Anastomotic failure, morbidity, and mortality rates were studied. Thirty-nine consecutive patients were included. Angiography and selective embolization of the left gastric, right gastric, and splenic arteries were performed. Surgery was performed 2 weeks later. Four patients did not have a complete embolization; median hospital stay after conditioning was 1.24 ± 0.6 days. In two patients, surgery could not be completed. Of the 33 remaining, 29 had a posterior mediastinic gastroplasty and four through the anterior mediastinum. The most common morbidity was respiratory. Five patients had a reoperation and the mortality was 6%. One case of anastomotic leak was found (3%). The mean hospital stay was 17.5 days. Preoperative embolization is a technique with acceptable morbidity and a short hospital stay. In our experience it can reduce the incidence of the morbidity, mortality, and anastomotic leak in gastroplasties with cervical anastomosis. Prospective studies will be necessary to demonstrate the validity of this approach.

Prevalence and outcome of esophagogastric anastomotic leak after esophagectomy in a UK regional cancer network.

The aim of this study was to determine the contemporary prevalence, outcome, and survival after esophagogastric anastomotic leakage (EGAL) following esophagectomy by a regional upper gastrointestinal cancer network and to investigate etiological factors. Two hundred forty consecutive patients underwent esophagectomy over a 10-year period (median age 61 [31-79] years, 147 transthoracic and 93 transhiatal esophagectomy, 105 neoadjuvant chemotherapy, 49 chemoradiotherapy). The primary outcome measures were the development of EGAL and survival. Twenty patients developed EGAL (8.3%, 15 managed conservatively, 5 reoperation). Overall operative mortality was 2% (5 patients in total, 1 after EGAL). Median, 1 and 2-year survival was 22 months, 73% and 50%, in patients after EGAL, compared with 31 months, 80% and 56%, in patients who did not suffer EGAL (P= 0.314). On multivariate analysis, low body mass indices (hazard ratio [HR] 0.29, 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.11-0.79, P= 0.016), individual surgeon (HR 1.21, 95% CI 1.02-1.43, P= 0.02), and neoadjuvant chemotherapy (HR 3.28, 95% CI 1.16-9.22, P= 0.024) were significantly associated with the development of EGAL. EGAL following esophagectomy remained common, but associated mortality was less common than reported in earlier Western series and long-term survival was unaffected.

Bands and bypasses: 30-day morbidity and mortality of bariatric surgical procedures as assessed by prospective, multi-center, risk-adjusted ACS-NSQIP data.

BACKGROUND: Previous multi-institution comparisons of open and laparoscopic Roux-en-Y gastric bypass (ORYGB and LRYGB), and laparoscopic adjustable gastric banding (LAGB) have been limited by the lack of unique current procedural terminology (CPT) codes. Specific codes have been available for LRYGB and LAGB since 2005 and 2006, respectively. We compare the short-term safety of these procedures, using risk-adjusted clinical data from a multi-institutional quality improvement program. METHODS: The America College of Surgeons National Surgical Quality Improvement Program (ACS-NSQIP) Participant Use File (PUF) was used to compare patients undergoing LRYGB with those undergoing ORYGB or LAGB. RESULTS: ORYGB versus LRYGB: The 2-year study period (2005-2006) included 5,777 patients (ORYGB = 1,146, LRYGB = 4,631). Patients undergoing ORYGB experienced a higher 30-day incidence of mortality (0.79% vs. 0.17%; p = 0.002), major complications rate (7.42% vs. 3.37%; p < 0.0001), any complication rate (13.18% vs. 6.69%; p < 0.0001), return visits to the OR (4.97% vs. 3.56%; p = 0.032), and longer postoperative length of stay (LOS) (median 3 vs. 2 days; p < 0.0001). After risk adjustment, ORYGB continued to demonstrate higher odds of major complication (OR = 2.04; [1.54, 2.69]). LAGB versus LRYGB: Analysis of 1 year of data from 2006 included 4,756 patients (LRYGB = 3,580, LAGB = 1,176). Those treated with LAGB experienced an equivalent 30-day mortality (0.09% vs. 0.14%; p = 1.0), and a lower rate of major complications (1.0% vs. 3.3%; p < 0.0001), any complication (2.6% vs. 6.7%; p < 0.0001), return visits to the OR (0.94% vs. 3.6%; p < 0.0001), and shorter postoperative LOS (median 1 vs. 2 days; p < 0.0001). Risk adjustment showed that LAGB was associated with a lower major complication odds (OR = 0.29; [0.16, 0.53]). CONCLUSIONS: Compared with LRYGB, ORYGB is associated with higher 30-day mortality and higher risk-adjusted major complication rate. While ORYGB may sometimes be indicated, a laparoscopic approach may be safer for RYGB when feasible. LAGB, compared with LRYGB, has a similarly low mortality rate and a small but statistically significant decrease in risk-adjusted 30-day complications. Clinical efficacy and long-term outcomes will need to be evaluated to determine superiority between these procedures.

Causes of 30-day bariatric surgery mortality: with emphasis on bypass obstruction.

BACKGROUND: This is a study of the causes of 30-day postoperative death following surgical treatment for obesity and a search for ways to decrease an already low mortality rate. METHODS: Data were contributed from 1986-2004 to the International Bariatric Surgery Registry by 85 sites, representing 137 surgeons. A spread-sheet was prepared with rows for causes and columns for patients. The 251 causes contributing to 93 deaths were then marked in cells wherever a patient was noted to have one of the causes. Rows and columns were then moved into positions that provided patterns of best fit. RESULTS: 11 patterns were found. 10 had well known initiating causes of death. Overall operative 30-day mortality was 0.24% (93 / 38,501). The most common cause of death was pulmonary embolism (32%, 30/93). 14 deaths were caused by leaks (15%, 14/93), and were equally prevalent after simple (15%, 2/14) or complex (15%, 12/79) operations. Small bowel obstruction caused 8 deaths, exclusively after complex operations. 5 of these involved the bypassed biliopancreatic limb and were defined as "bypass obstruction". CONCLUSIONS: A spread-sheet study of cause of 30-day postoperative death revealed a rapidly lethal initiating complication of Roux-en-Y gastric bypass obstruction that requires the earliest possible recognition and treatment. Bypass obstruction needs a name and code to facilitate recognition, study, prevention and early treatment. Spread-sheet pattern analysis of all available data helped identify the initiating cause of death for individual patients when multiple data elements were present.

Initial experience with the adjustable gastric band in morbidly obese US adolescents and recommendations for further investigation.

BACKGROUND: The public health crisis of obesity has spread to the pediatric population. In morbidly obese (MO) adolescents, early weight loss intervention can reduce and prevent obesity-related comorbidities and mortality and improve quality of life. The present study was performed to evaluate weight loss efficacy and safety of "off-label" laparoscopic adjustable gastric banding (LAGB) procedures performed in MO adolescents by our adult bariatric program. PATIENTS AND METHODS: We retrospectively reviewed data from 716 LAGB procedures performed on an off-label basis in adults and 24 adolescent patients ages 14 to 20 years by the adult bariatric program at our institution between 2001 and 2006. RESULTS: There was no mortality. Average operative time was 45 minutes, length of stay for adolescents was 15 hours, and weight loss outcome and overall surgical complication rates are comparable between adolescents and adults. For adolescent subjects, baseline mean preoperative body mass index was 49 kg/m and average excess weight loss rates were 22%, 34%, 52%, 42%, and 42% at 3, 6, 12, 24, and 36 months, respectively. The overall complication rate was 29%, with a 25% incidence of pouch enlargement in adolescents (vs 18% in adult patients; P = ns). Two of 24 adolescent patients (8.4%) required laparoscopic band repositioning (vs 1.5% of adult patients; P = 0.06). CONCLUSIONS: LAGB is an effective and safe surgical weight loss modality for MO adolescent subjects. Vigilant follow-up for LAGB-related complications and intensive postoperative behavioral management are important for improving long-term success. We recommend continued investigation of long-term efficacy and safety of LAGB in this population.

[Choice of bariatric and metabolic surgical procedures].

Bariatric and metabolic surgery has become the clinical hot topic of the treatment of metabolic syndromes including obesity and diabetes mellitus, but how to choose the appropriate surgical procedure remains the difficult problem in clinical practice. Clinical guidelines of American Society for Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery(ASMBS)(version 2013) introduced the procedures of bariatric and metabolic surgery mainly including biliopancreatic diversion with duodenal switch(BPD-DS), laparoscopic adjustable gastric banding (LAGB), laparoscopic Roux-en-Y gastric bypass (LRYGB) and laparoscopic sleeve gastrectomy(LSG). To choose the appropriate bariatric and metabolic procedure, the surgeons should firstly understand the indications and the contraindications of each procedure. Procedure choice should also consider personal condition (body mass index, comorbidities and severity of diabetes), family and socioeconomic status (postoperative follow-up attendance, understanding of potential surgical risk of gastrectomy and patient's will), family and disease history (patients with high risk of gastric cancer should avoid LRYGB; patients with gastroesophageal reflux disease should avoid LSG) and associated personal factors of surgeons. With the practice of bariatric and metabolic surgery, the defects, especially long-term complications, of different procedures were found. For example, LRYGB resulted in higher incidence of postoperative anemia and marginal ulcer, high risk of gastric cancer as well as the requirement of vitamin supplementation and regular follow-up. Though LSG has lower surgical risk, its efficacy of diabetes mellitus remission and long-term weight loss are inferior to the LRYGB. These results pose challenges to the surgeons to balance the benefits and risks of the bariatric procedures. A lot of factors can affect the choice of bariatric and metabolic procedure. Surgeons should choose the procedure according to patient's condition with the consideration of the choice of patients. The bariatric and metabolic surgery not only manages the diabetes mellitus and weight loss, but also results in the reconstruction of gastrointestinal tract and side effect. Postoperative surgical complications and nutritional deficiency should also be considered. Thereby, individualized bariatric procedure with the full consideration of each related factors is the ultimate objective of bariatric and metabolic surgery.

Concomitant removal of gastric band and sleeve gastrectomy: analysis of outcomes and complications from the ACS-NSQIP database.

BACKGROUND: Conversion of adjustable gastric band to laparoscopic sleeve gastrectomy (LSG) is feasible, but multiple reports have indicated higher morbidity and staple line leak rates when this is performed as a single-stage procedure. The objective of this study is to compare the safety profile and outcomes of LSG with concomitant gastric band removal (LSG/GBR) versus LSG using the American College of Surgeons' National Surgical Quality Improvement Program (ACS-NSQIP). METHODS: Using the ACS-NSQIP database (2010-2012), LSG cases were identified using Current Procedural Terminology (CPT) code 43775 and concomitant LSG/LGBR using CPT code 43775+(43772 or 43774). Baseline patient characteristics and perioperative variables including postoperative mortality and morbidity rates were retrieved. The primary endpoint was sepsis within 30 days. Bivariate and multivariate analyses were carried out. RESULTS: During the study period, 11,189 (96.9%) patients had LSG and 357 (3.1%) had LSG/GBR for a total of 11,546 patients. On bivariate analyses, the rate of sepsis was higher after LSG/GBR (1.68% versus .58%; P = .022), and the mean operative time was longer (124.6±52.3 versus 98.6±49.0 min; P<.001). There was no statistically significant difference in the rate of postoperative mortality (.28% versus .08 %; P = .27) or that of other outcomes such as return to the operating room, wound infection, or venous thromboembolism. After multivariate analysis, the odds of developing postoperative sepsis remained significantly higher for patients undergoing LSG/GBR compared with LSG alone (odds ratio [OR] 3.32; confidence interval [CI] 1.41-7.84; P = .006). CONCLUSION: LSG/GBR can be performed with low morbidity and mortality. However, this procedure carries a higher rate of postoperative sepsis.

Factors influencing survival following surgical treatment of obesity.

BACKGROUND: The prevalence of obesity in the United States and the surgical treatment of obesity have increased since 1999. An important measure of outcome following surgical treatment is survival. METHODS: This study began with data prospectively collected from Jan 1, 1986 to Dec 31, 1999 by 55 data collection sites, representing 77 surgeons who used standardized data collection software developed by the International Bariatric Surgery Registry (IBSR). A subset of 18,972 subjects was submitted to the National Death Index (NDI) for search of death occurring from Jan 1, 1986 to Dec 31, 2001. The univariate survival analysis included Kaplan-Meier plots and log-rank tests. Cox proportional-hazards (PH) frailty model was used to identify risk factors and estimate hazard ratios in a multi-factor survival analysis. Covariates included gender, operative age, body mass index, operation category (simple and complex), operation year, diabetes, smoking and hypertension as recorded prior to operation. RESULTS: Deaths were found for 3.45% of the patients (654/18,972). Average follow-up was 8.3 years. Age, gender, BMI, history of smoking, diabetes, and hypertension were significant predictors of survival. Operation category (P=0.13) and operation year (P=0.89) were not significant predictors of survival. CONCLUSION: Simple and complex operations were equally effective in keeping patients alive in this cohort of patients operated on for severe obesity from 1986 to 1999. Young, female, non-smoking patients with low BMI at operation and no history of diabetes or hypertension had the longest survival. Longer follow-up for death is needed before any recommendations can be made for operation category based on survival.

Obese teenagers treated by Lap-Band System: the Italian experience.

BACKGROUND: Little is known about obesity surgery in young and adolescent patients. The aim of this study is to evaluate results of laparoscopic adjustable gastric banding in obese teenagers. METHODS: Patients < or = 19 years old selected from the database of the Italian Collaborative Study Group for Lap-Band were analyzed according to mortality, comorbidities, laparotomic conversion, intra- and postoperative complications, body mass index (BMI), and % excess weight loss (EWL) at different times of follow-up. Data were expressed as mean +/- SD. RESULTS: Fifty-eight (1.5%) of 3813 patients who underwent operation with the Lap-Band System were < or = 19 years old: 47F/11M; mean age, 17.96 +/- 0.99 years (range, 15-19); mean BMI, 46.1 +/- 6.31 Kg/m2 (range, 34.9 - 69.25); mean % excess weight, 86.4 +/- 27.1 (range, 34 - 226.53). Sixteen (27.5%) of the 58 patients were superobese (BMI > or = 50). In 27/58 (46.5%) patients, 1 or more comorbidities were diagnosed. Mortality was absent. Laparotomic conversion was necessary in 1 patient with gastric perforation on the anterior wall. Overall postoperative complications occurred in 6/58 (10.3%). The band was removed in 6/58 (10.3%) patients for gastric erosion (3 patients), psychologic, intolerance (2 patients), and in the remaining patient was converted 2 years after surgery (BMI 31) to gastric bypass or gastric pouch dilatation. Patient follow-up at 1, 3, 5, and 7 years was 48/52 (92.3%), 37/42 (88.1%), 25/33 (75.7%), and 10/10, respectively. At these times, mean BMI was 35.9 +/- 8.4, 37.8 +/- 11.27, 34.9 +/- 12.2, and 29.7 +/- 5.2 Kg/m2. Mean %EWL at the same time was 45.6 +/- 29.6, 39.7 +/- 29.8, 43.7 +/- 38.1, and 55.6 +/- 29.2. Five/25 (20%) patients had < or = 25% EWL at 5 years follow-up, while none of the 10 patients subject to follow-up at 7 years had < or = 25% EWL. CONCLUSIONS: Lap-Band System is an interesting option for teenagers suffering obesity and its related comorbidities, which deserves further investigation.

Laparoscopic adjustable gastric banding: evolving clinical experience.

Laparoscopic adjustable gastric banding (LAGB) was first introduced in the early 1990s as a potentially safe, controllable, and reversible method for achieving significant weight loss in the severely obese. It is timely to review the existing data on this procedure derived from European, Australian, and American studies and compare and contrast their results. Special emphasis is placed on clinical outcomes and reported complications of LAGB. In general, international studies support use of the LAGB procedure,while American studies are generally better designed but more equivocal in their results.

Laparoscopic adjustable gastric banding: an attractive option.

Bariatric surgery is the only effective treatment producing sustained weight loss and reduction in comorbidities in the morbidly obese. Laparoscopic adjustable gastric banding (LAGB) has evolved considerably in techniques of insertion and band management since the initial descriptions in the early 1990s. Major advantages of LAGB include lower perioperative morbidity and mortality, adjust-ability, and reversibility. Although weight loss occurs more slowly than after gastric bypass, end results are comparable.

Early mortality among Medicare beneficiaries undergoing bariatric surgical procedures.

CONTEXT: Case series demonstrate that bariatric surgery can be performed with a low rate of perioperative mortality (0.5%), but the rate among high-risk patients and the community at large is unknown. OBJECTIVES: To evaluate the risk of early mortality among Medicare beneficiaries and to determine the relative risk of death among older patients. DESIGN: Retrospective cohort study. SETTING AND PATIENTS: All fee-for-service Medicare beneficiaries, 1997-2002. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Thirty-day, 90-day, and 1-year postsurgical all-cause mortality among patients undergoing bariatric procedures. RESULTS: A total of 16 155 patients underwent bariatric procedures (mean age, 47.7 years [SD, 11.3 years]; 75.8% women). The rates of 30-day, 90-day, and 1-year mortality were 2.0%, 2.8%, and 4.6%, respectively. Men had higher rates of early death than women (3.7% vs 1.5%, 4.8% vs 2.1%, and 7.5% vs 3.7% at 30 days, 90 days, and 1 year, respectively; P<.001). Mortality rates were greater for those aged 65 years or older compared with younger patients (4.8% vs 1.7% at 30 days, 6.9% vs 2.3% at 90 days, and 11.1% vs 3.9% at 1 year; P<.001). After adjustment for sex and comorbidity index, the odds of death within 90 days were 5-fold greater for older Medicare beneficiaries (aged > or =75 years; n = 136) than for those aged 65 to 74 years (n = 1381; odds ratio, 5.0; 95% confidence interval, 3.1-8.0). The odds of death at 90 days were 1.6 times higher (95% confidence interval, 1.3-2.0) for patients of surgeons with less than the median surgical volume of bariatric procedures (among Medicare beneficiaries during the study period) after adjusting for age, sex, and comorbidity index. CONCLUSIONS: Among Medicare beneficiaries, the risk of early death after bariatric surgery is considerably higher than previously suggested and associated with advancing age, male sex, and lower surgeon volume of bariatric procedures. Patients aged 65 years or older had a substantially higher risk of death within the early postoperative period than younger patients.

[Efficacy and limits of the bariatric surgery]. / Efficacia e limiti della chirurgia bariatrica.

Morbid obesity is associated with and increased risk of serious comorbidities, including type 2 diabetes, sleep apnoea, cardiovascular diseases, and orthopedic disabilities. Not operative treatments for superobese patients have not been shown to produce reliable long-term benefits, therefore surgical therapy has became the treatment of choice. The number of surgical procedures increased in the last year confirm these data. However, before recommended a specific surgical procedures to a superobese patients it is necessary to consider some variables, such as: patient, health structure, and multidisciplinary equipe. Since there are not recommended or condemned surgical procedures, in this paper the Authors tried to evaluate the effectiveness and limits of the most performed surgical procedures for the treatment of pathologic obesity: gastric by-pass, biliopancreatic diversion (duodenal switch), vertical gastroplasty, banding gastric. The Authors used some pointer of outcome to measure effectiveness and limits: five year post-operative percentage excess weight loss >/< 50, peri-operative >/< 1%, early and late complications >/< 15%, reoperation >/< 3%, improvement of quality of life. Thanks to new surgical technique, restrictive options are losing ground, while malabsorbitive bariatric procedures are collecting successful.

Application of the POSSUM system in bariatric surgery.

BACKGROUND: The POSSUM system has been devised for physiologic and operative scoring. The scoring system produced assessment for morbidity and mortality rates, which did not significantly differ from observed rates. The authors have applied this system to bariatric surgery. PATIENTS AND METHODS: 20 patients were scored by the POSSUM system. All underwent elective bariatric surgery during 1997. All patients were scored at the time of surgery with the physiologic score (FIS) and at discharge with the operative severity score (IQ). The FIS score included age; cardiac signs; chest radiograph; respiratory history; blood pressure; pulse; Glasgow coma score; determinations of hemoglobin, leukocyte, urea, sodium, and potassium levels; and electrocardiogram. The IQ score included multiple procedures, total blood loss, peritoneal soiling, presence of malignancy, and mode of surgery. RESULTS: The mean POSSUM score was 23.9. The mean FIS was 13.95 (12-22), and the mean IQ was 9.4 (7-16). The distribution of patients was performed for BMI. The group with BMI 35-45 (n = 4 patients) had a mean POSSUM score of 22.75, a mean FIS of 13.75, and a mean IQ of 9.0. The group with BMI >45 (n = 16 patients) had a mean POSSUM score of 24.18, a mean FIS of 14.62, and a mean IQ of 9.5. The morbidities were gastric fistula with peritonitis and deep venous thrombosis. The two complications had similar POSSUM scores with different BMIs. No mortality was observed. CONCLUSIONS: According to this experience, the POSSUM scoring system appears to provide an indicator of minor risk of morbidity and mortality in bariatric surgery with vertical banded gastroplasty.

Laparoscopic vertical banded gastroplasty--an effective long-term therapy for morbidly obese patients?

BACKGROUND: Vertical banded gastroplasty (VBG) has previously been documented as an effective treatment for morbid obesity. We have described a laparoscopic technique to perform this operation. Follow-up data are now presented. METHODS: A consecutive series of 139 morbidly obese patients were operated on with laparoscopic VBG. The patients were assessed with respect to peri- and postoperative morbidity, postoperative recovery and weight reduction up to 5 years thereafter. RESULTS: Conversions to an open operation (n = 6) and early reoperations (n = 3) occurred in the early part of the series. Late complications were observed in 8 patients. The average weight reduction after 1 year was 50% of excess body weight, which remained also after 2 years. The continued follow-up covering 3 to 5 years postoperatively revealed a moderate weight gain in about 20% of patients. CONCLUSION: VBG can be safely performed by use of the laparoscopic technique. The average weight reduction after 1 and 2 years was 50% of excess body weight, whereafter tendency to partial weight gain was noted, suggesting an outcome comparable to that documented after the open surgical approach.