Variation in Small Bowel Length and Its Influence on the Outcomes of Sleeve Gastrectomy

Small bowel length is drawing attention in the development of gastrointestinal bariatric/metabolic surgery, but the importance of the length of the small bowel in bariatric/metabolic is not clear. The present study was conducted to investigate variations in small bowel length and their clinical significance in patients undergoing laparoscopic sleeve gastrectomy (LSG).

Small bowel length was measured in 620 patients diagnosed with obesity who underwent LSG between March 2014 and August 2018. Prospectively obtained demographic and clinical data were investigated, focusing on the association between small bowel length and weight loss.

Small bowel length varied widely among patients (mean 739.8 + 115.7 cm, range 380-1050 cm). Linear regression analysis revealed a significant association between small bowel length and body height, body weight, waist circumference, and serum levels of low-density lipoprotein cholesterol, hemoglobin, C-peptide, glycated hemoglobin (A1C), and gamma-glutamyl transferase (r-GT). Multivariate analysis confirmed that body height and serum A1C% levels independently predicted small bowel length in bariatric patients, strongly with body height (p < 0.001) but weakly with A1C%(p = 0.021). One-year follow-up rate was 75.3% (467/620), and small bowel length did not influence weight loss or the reduction of obesity related cardiovascular risk factors after LSG.

In this study, small bowel length varied widely among bariatric patients and was strongly associated with body height and weakly with serum A1C levels. Small bowel length has no significant role in weight loss or the resolution of cardiovascular risk factors after LSG.