[Revision after failed bariatric surgery--review of complications and current therapeutic options]

Obesity is increasing worldwide at an alarming rate. Particularly in Western countries, obesity and related problems have become a serious medical problem and an enormous socio-economic burden.

Currently, surgery is the only avail-able treatment for patients with severe obesity which leads to sustained weight loss and cure of co-morbidities in the majority of the patients. The increase in the number of bariatric operations and the occasional failure and complications of these surgical procedures have resulted in an increased need for revision surgery. Overall, 10-25 % of patients are expected to need a revision for failure of the primary bariatric procedure. The main indications for revision procedures are inadequate weight loss, surgery-related complications as well as surgical emergencies and long-term complications caused by malnutrition or -vitamin deficiencies. Unfortunately, there are currently no randomised trials to answer the question as to which operation should be performed in which patient and after which procedure. Decisions are often influenced by the expertise and preference of the operating surgeon as well as by patient's preference. Thus, a systematic review of published data to this complex issue appears to be helpful and important for daily surgical practise.

Revision bariatric procedures are technically more complex and associated with increased postoperative complications. These operations should basically be performed in centres with profound expertise in this field of surgery, and - whenever possible - laparoscopically. However, every abdominal surgeon should be able to diagnose and treat some acute complications. After failed restrictive procedures, revision is recommended only in cases of complications but with adequate weight loss at the time of failure. Otherwise, conversion to combined procedures should be considered. After the failure of combined procedures, further weight loss or successful treatment of complications can be achieved by adding more restriction and/or malabsorption components. The latter is associated with an increased risk of nutritional sequelae.