Does longitudinal sleeve gastrectomy have a family "halo effect"? A case-matched study.

ABSTRACT

INTRODUCTION: Some researchers have suggested that the weight loss of a patient who has undergone bariatric surgery could be influenced by his or her family environment. Indeed, some people decide to undergo surgery after another family member has had the operation. This study aimed to evaluate the results of longitudinal sleeve gastrectomy (LSG) performed for several members of a family compared with to a control group of unrelated individuals. MATERIAL AND METHODS: On the basis of preoperative data, 78 LSG patients from 39 families (the LSG-family group) were matched 11 with 78 LSG patients selected from among 550 LSG patients whose family members had undergone no bariatric surgery (the LSG group). Within the LSG-family group, a distinction was drawn between family members who had undergone surgery before their relation (the LSG-family 1 subgroup) and those who had undergone surgery after their relation (the LSG-family 2 subgroup). RESULTS: The median preoperative body mass index (BMI) in each of the two groups was 48.1 kg/m². The LSG-family and LSG groups 24 months after surgery had respective mean BMIs of 28.6 and 32.5 kg/m² (p ≤ 0.01), excess weight losses (EWLs) of 83.5 % and 71.4 % (p ≤ 0.01), and missed consultation rates of 13.1 % and 25.9 % (p = 0.04). A comparison of the LSG-family 1 and family 2 subgroups 24 months after surgery showed respective mean BMIs of 30.0 and 27.5 kg/m² (p = 0.12), EWLs of 80.2 % and 86.2 % (p = 0.32), and missed consultation rates of 14.1 % and 12.1 % (p = 0.22). CONCLUSION: The outcome for LSG in terms of weight loss and postoperative follow-up care was better in the family group than in the control group. This may have been due to better postoperative follow-up care for the patients in the LSG-family group. Within a family, the patients who had surgery after their relation showed a trend toward greater weight loss and better postoperative follow-up care.