The effect of surgery-to-conception interval on pregnancy outcomes after sleeve gastrectomy

The optimal timing of pregnancy after bariatric surgery has not been established, with data limited regarding laparoscopic sleeve gastrectomy (LSG), currently the most common bariatric operation performed.

We explored associations of the surgery-to-conception interval with pregnancy outcomes after LSG.

A university hospital.

We assessed pregnancy outcomes in relation to the surgery-to-conception interval for all women who underwent LSG and delivered during 2006 to 2018.

Of 154 patients, 67 (43.5%) conceived within the first 18 months postoperatively (early-pregnancy group), whereas 87 (56.5%) conceived later (late-pregnancy group). The median surgery-to-conception interval was 390 (interquartile range 247-459) days in the early-pregnancy group and 1104 (8527-1548) days in the late-pregnancy group. Compared with the early-pregnancy group, the late-pregnancy group had higher gestational weight gain (median 11 versus 8 kg, P < .001) and lower hemoglobin levels in early pregnancy (12.3 versus 12.6 g/dL, P = .03) and after delivery (10.0 versus 10.4 g/dL, P = .02). Other maternal and perinatal outcomes were similar between the groups, including the proportion of small-for-gestational-age infants (11.9% versus 14.9%, P = .64) for those who conceived within or later than 18 months after surgery. Similar rates of small-for-gestational-age infants were found between those who conceived within or ≥12 months after surgery (P = 1.0).

Timing of pregnancy after LSG was found not to be associated with pregnancy outcomes. Together with documentations of a similar safety profile of pregnancy occurring earlier or later in the postoperative course, these data should reassure women who do not wish to delay conception after surgery.