Definition determines weight regain outcomes after sleeve gastrectomy

Area of Science:

• Bariatric Surgery
• Metabolic and Endocrine Surgery
• Surgical Outcomes Research

Background:

• Sleeve gastrectomy (SG) is a prevalent bariatric procedure.
• Significant weight regain post-surgery can lead to diabetes recurrence and reduced quality of life.
• Current understanding of weight regain is limited by inconsistent reporting and lack of guidelines.

Purpose of the Study:

• To demonstrate how varying definitions of weight regain impact reported outcomes of SG.
• To contribute to establishing a standardized definition for weight regain in bariatric surgery.

Main Methods:

• Retrospective analysis of sleeve gastrectomy patients at 5-year follow-up.
• Application of six different weight regain definitions to assess outcome variability.
• Post hoc analysis to explore associations between weight change and clinical outcomes.

Main Results:

• Six distinct definitions of weight regain yielded rates from 9% to 91% in the study cohort.
• Weight change demonstrated significant associations with the Bariatric Analysis Reporting Outcome System (BAROS) score.
• Patient-reported outcomes were significantly linked to weight change.

Conclusions:

• Non-uniform reporting of weight regain significantly influences the interpretation of SG outcomes.
• Development of consensus statements and guidelines is necessary to standardize reporting.
• Clear definition of weight regain in published studies is essential in the interim.