Bariatric Surgery and the Long-Term Risk of Venous Thromboembolism: A Population-Based Cohort Study.

PURPOSE: Bariatric surgery is associated with a greater venous thromboembolism (VTE) risk in the weeks following surgery, but the long-term risk of VTE is incompletely characterized. We evaluated bariatric surgery in relation to long-term VTE risk. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This population-based retrospective matched cohort study within three United States-based integrated health care systems included adults with body mass index (BMI) ≥ 35 kg/m2 who underwent bariatric surgery between January 2005 and September 2015 (n = 30,171), matched to nonsurgical patients on site, age, sex, BMI, diabetes, insulin use, race/ethnicity, comorbidity score, and health care utilization (n = 218,961). Follow-up for incident VTE ended September 2015 (median 9.3, max 10.7 years). RESULTS: Our population included 30,171 bariatric surgery patients and 218,961 controls; we identified 4068 VTE events. At 30 days post-index date, bariatric surgery was associated with a fivefold greater VTE risk (HRadj = 5.01; 95% CI = 4.14, 6.05) and a nearly fourfold greater PE risk (HRadj = 3.93; 95% CI = 2.87, 5.38) than no bariatric surgery. At 1 year post-index date, bariatric surgery was associated with a 48% lower VTE risk and a 70% lower PE risk (HRadj = 0.52; 95% CI = 0.41, 0.66 and HRadj = 0.30; 95% CI = 0.21, 0.44, respectively). At 5 years post-index date, lower VTE risks persisted, with bariatric surgery associated with a 41% lower VTE risk and a 55% lower PE risk (HRadj = 0.59; 95% CI = 0.48, 0.73 and HRadj = 0.45; 95% CI = 0.32, 0.64, respectively). CONCLUSION: Although in the short-term bariatric surgery is associated with a greater VTE risk, in the long-term, it is associated with a substantially lower risk.

Reduction in Long-term Mortality After Sleeve Gastrectomy and Gastric Bypass Compared to Nonsurgical Patients With Severe Obesity.

OBJECTIVE: To separately compare the long-term risk of mortality among bariatric surgical patients undergoing either Roux-en-Y gastric bypass (RYGB) or sleeve gastrectomy (SG) to large, matched, population-based cohorts of patients with severe obesity who did not undergo surgery. BACKGROUND: Bariatric surgery has been associated with reduced long-term mortality compared to usual care for severe obesity which is particularly relevant in the COVID-19 era. Most prior studies involved the RYGB operation and there is less long-term data on the SG. METHODS: In this retrospective, matched cohort study, patients with a body mass index ≥35 kg/m 2 who underwent bariatric surgery from January 2005 to September 2015 in three integrated health systems in the United States were matched to nonsurgical patients on site, age, sex, body mass index, diabetes status, insulin use, race/ethnicity, combined Charlson/Elixhauser comorbidity score, and prior health care utilization, with follow-up through September 2015. Each procedure (RYGB, SG) was compared to its own control group and the two surgical procedures were not directly compared to each other. Multivariable-adjusted Cox regression analysis investigated time to all-cause mortality (primary outcome) comparing each of the bariatric procedures to usual care. Secondary outcomes separately examined the incidence of cardiovascular-related death, cancer related-death, and diabetes related-death. RESULTS: Among 13,900 SG, 17,258 RYGB, and 87,965 nonsurgical patients, the 5-year follow-up rate was 70.9%, 72.0%, and 64.5%, respectively. RYGB and SG were each associated with a significantly lower risk of all-cause mortality compared to nonsurgical patients at 5-years of follow-up (RYGB: HR = 0.43; 95% CI: 0.35,0.54; SG: HR = 0.28; 95% CI: 0.13,0.57) Similarly, RYGB was associated with a significantly lower 5-year risk of cardiovascular-(HR = 0.27; 95% CI: 0.20, 0.37), cancer- (HR = 0.54; 95% CI: 0.39, 0.76), and diabetes-related mortality (HR = 0.23; 95% CI:0.15, 0.36). There was not enough follow-up time to assess 5-year cause-specific mortality in SG patients, but at 3-years follow-up, there was significantly lower risk of cardiovascular- (HR = 0.33; 95% CI:0.19, 0.58), cancer- (HR = 0.26; 95% CI:0.11, 0.59), and diabetes-related (HR = 0.15; 95% CI:0.04, 0.53) mortality for SG patients. CONCLUSION: This study confirms and extends prior findings of an association with better survival following bariatric surgery in RYGB patients compared to controls and separately demonstrates that the SG operation also appears to be associated with lower mortality compared to matched control patients with severe obesity that received usual care. These results help to inform the tradeoffs between long-term benefits and risks of bariatric surgery.

Comparative effectiveness of sleeve gastrectomy versus Roux-en-Y gastric bypass for weight loss and safety outcomes in older adults.

BACKGROUND: Most bariatric studies in older adult patients have focused on older operations with limited follow-up and equivocal results. OBJECTIVES: To compare weight loss and safety in patients ages≥65 years undergoing laparoscopic sleeve gastrectomy (SG) and laparoscopic Roux-en-Y gastric bypass (LRYGB). SETTING: Nine different bariatric surgery centers with 23 surgeons serving over 30,000 bariatric patients. METHODS: Participants were≥65 years who had a SG or LRYGB between January 1, 2010, and March 15, 2015. Outcomes measured were change in weight up to 4 years after surgery; 30-, 90-, and 365-day mortality; and early (≤30 d) and late (31-365 d) complication rates. To control for nonrandom assignment, SG and LRYGB cases were propensity matched at the time of surgery for gender, race/ethnicity, procedure year, body mass index, presence of diabetes and/or hypertension, and overall co-morbidity burden. RESULTS: There were 177 LRYGB and 252 SG patients (n = 429). Patients were female (70%), 67 years old (range 65 to 79), non-Hispanic white (64%), and had a body mass index of 42.6±5.4 kg/m2. The year 4 follow-up rate was 75% (n = 322). LRYGB patients lost significantly more weight than SG after a median 4 years of follow-up (P<.001), mortality was similar, and LRYGB had higher overall complication rates (30.5%) than SG (15.4%). CONCLUSIONS: Elderly patients lost significantly more weight with LRYGB compared with SG. Further studies will be necessary to determine if the long-term effects of greater weight loss warrant the increased risk involved with LRYGB.

Revision of primary sleeve gastrectomy to Roux-en-Y gastric bypass: indications and outcomes from a high-volume center.

BACKGROUND: Laparoscopic sleeve gastrectomy (SG) has become an accepted primary bariatric operation. Like other bariatric operations, inadequate weight loss and complications have been reported. OBJECTIVES: The aim of this study was to assess the indications and outcomes of revision of SG to laparoscopic Roux-en-Y gastric bypass (RYGB) at a single community hospital. SETTING: Community hospital, United States. METHODS: Retrospective review of a prospectively collected database identifying SG operations done from February 2009 to June 2014. All patients who underwent revision from SG to RYGB were studied. RESULTS: Forty-eight patients underwent revision of SG to RYGB. Mean time to revision was 26 months (range, 2-60 mo) and mean follow up after RYGB was 20 months (range, 4-48 mo). Indications for revision were reflux (n = 14), inadequate weight loss (n = 11), reflux and inadequate weight loss (n = 16), stricture (n = 4), chronic leak (n = 1), and recurrent diabetes and reflux (n = 2). Reflux symptoms resolved in 96% of patients after revision, and hiatal hernias were repaired in 50% of patients. Percentage total weight loss at 3, 6, 12, 24, and 36 months was 9.0%, 12.9%, 15.7%, 13.3%, and 6.5%, respectively. The overall rate of complication was 31%. There were no mortalities. CONCLUSIONS: Revision of SG to RYGB is a potentially effective means of treating SG complications, particularly reflux. Reflux was the most common indication for revision and was often associated with a hiatal hernia. Further studies will be necessary to evaluate the long-term maintenance of additional weight loss after revision of SG to RYGB.