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Isolation of Human Islets from Partially Pancreatectomized Patients
Published on: July 30, 2011
Pancreatic exocrine insufficiency after bariatric surgery
Maimoena S S Guman1, Nienke van Olst2, Zehra G Yaman3
1Department of Internal Medicine, Spaarne Gasthuis, Hoofddorp, the Netherlands; Department of Internal and Vascular Medicine, Amsterdam UMC, University of Amsterdam, Amsterdam, the Netherlands.
Background:
Chronic abdominal complaints after bariatric surgery may be explained by pancreatic exocrine insufficiency (PEI).
Objectives:
We aimed to evaluate the clinical value of the Pancreatic Exocrine Insufficiency Questionnaire (PEI-Q) as a screening tool to identify patients with a high probability of having PEI.
Setting:
Outpatient clinic for bariatric surgery.
Methods:
Patients scheduled for a screening or follow-up appointment were asked to complete the PEI-Q and the Gastrointestinal Quality of Life Index questionnaire (GIQLI). Postoperative patients with a high PEI-Q score (0,6) were offered a fecalelastase (FE) test (abnormal if <200 μg/g).
Results:
Between June 2020 and February 2021, a total of 1600 of 1629 PEI-Qs were completed, 1073 (67%) of which after surgery. The postoperative group consisted mostly of females (81.9%), aged 49.0 ± 10.6 years, with a total weight loss of 30.3% ± 8.8%. Among them, 63.4% had abnormal PEI-Q scores compared with 34.9% before surgery (P < .01). In contrast, the median GIQLI score increased (119 [interquartile range (IQR), 107-129.25] versus 110 [IQR, 95-121.75]) before surgery (P < .01). Additionally, 310 FE tests were performed, of which only 11.9% was suggestive of PEI. No correlation was found between the PEI-Q scores and FE levels (c-index .55).
Conclusion:
The PEI-Q in its current version is not able to distinguish complaints of PEI and bariatric surgery itself and therefore cannot be used as a screening tool for PEI. The specificity of the FE test seems to be reduced after surgery. Future research should include a more direct pancreatic function test, which may provide more insight into PEI after bariatric surgery.
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