Effects of Bariatric Surgery on COVID-19: a Multicentric Study from a High Incidence Area.

INTRODUCTION: The favorable effects of bariatric surgery (BS) on overall pulmonary function and obesity-related comorbidities could influence SARS-CoV-2 clinical expression. This has been investigated comparing COVID-19 incidence and clinical course between a cohort of patients submitted to BS and a cohort of candidates for BS during the spring outbreak in Italy. MATERIALS AND METHODS: From April to August 2020, 594 patients from 6 major bariatric centers in Emilia-Romagna were administered an 87-item telephonic questionnaire. Demographics, COVID-19 incidence, suggestive symptoms, and clinical outcome parameters of operated patients and candidates to BS were compared. The incidence of symptomatic COVID-19 was assessed including the clinical definition of probable case, according to World Health Organization criteria. RESULTS: Three hundred fifty-three operated patients (Op) and 169 candidates for BS (C) were finally included in the statistical analysis. While COVID-19 incidence confirmed by laboratory tests was similar in the two groups (5.7% vs 5.9%), lower incidence of most of COVID-19-related symptoms, such as anosmia (p: 0.046), dysgeusia (p: 0.049), fever with rapid onset (p: 0.046) were recorded among Op patients, resulting in a lower rate of probable cases (14.4% vs 23.7%; p: 0.009). Hospitalization was more frequent in C patients (2.4% vs 0.3%, p: 0.02). One death in each group was reported (0.3% vs 0.6%). Previous pneumonia and malignancies resulted to be associated with symptomatic COVID-19 at univariate and multivariate analysis. CONCLUSION: Patients submitted to BS seem to develop less severe SARS-CoV-2 infection than subjects suffering from obesity.

Effects of the intake of craft or industrial beer on serum homocysteine.

Beer is a source of folate, vitamin B6 and B12, molecules involved in the pathways of homocysteine (HCY), a risk factor for cardiovascular disease. This research evaluated if a consumption of craft or industrial beer could reduce serum HCY. In a randomised cross-over study, 12 men (28.7 ± 6.0 years) and 12 women (29.4 ± 7.5 years), healthy, omnivorous, with normal body mass index, non-smoking and not taking oral supplements or contraceptives, followed a free-living diet and received, daily, for 3 weeks, 330 ml of industrial (4.5% of alcohol) or craft beer (9% of alcohol). Anthropometric measures and blood samples were taken at the beginning and at the end of each period. The consumption of industrial beer reduced (p < 0.05) HCY (7.35 vs. 6.50 µmol/L) and increased folic acid (3.46 vs. 3.94 ng/mL). Craft beer increased gamma-gluamyl transpeptidase (GGT) (16.6 vs. 18.6 U/L) and reduced vitamin B6 (20.9 vs. 16.9 ng/mL).