How to treat stenosis after sleeve gastrectomy?

Laparoscopic sleeve gastrectomy (LSG) has increasingly gained worldwide acceptance among bariatric surgeons during the past 10 years. Numerous articles have been written about the different approaches to the management of gastric fistulas, but limited data can be found concerning gastric stenosis after LSG.

Private hospital, France.

A total of 18 patients received endoscopic treatment for stenosis after LSG between May 2007 and June 2015. Stenosis was classified according to the endoscopic findings as functional (the passage of the endoscope was possible, but the sleeve was twisted with various degrees of rotation) or mechanical (the passage of the endoscope was very difficult or impossible).

This study included 13 women and 5 men, with an average age of 37.2±8.4 years and an average body mass index of 41.6±8.7 kg/m². The average number of endoscopic procedures was 1.3 (range, 1-4). No patient had stent migration. The successful rate of endoscopic approach for stenosis of LSG was 94.4%, with one patient requiring conversion to Roux-en-Y gastric bypass. The mean time from the LSG to the first endoscopic intervention was 28.2 days. All patients presented with midsleeve stricture, located near the incisura angularis, and no patient showed a stenosis in the upper part of the gastric tube.

The treatment of stenosis after LSG must be tailored to the clinical status of the patient and endoscopic findings. Both balloon dilation and stent deployment are useful and safe tools and must be used when appropriate.