Marginal Ulcers Following One-Anastomosis Gastric Bypass: a Systematic Review and Meta-analysis

Marginal ulcer (MU) is an uncommon but significant complication following one-anastomosis gastric bypass (OAGB). Our study aims to understand the incidence rates, risk factors, and management of MU following OAGB.

MEDLINE, Scopus, and Cochrane Library databases were examined to identify all studies on OAGB where authors had reported on MU. Data were collected on basic demographics, incidence rates, risk factors, and management of this condition.

Thirty-two studies involving 8868 patients were analysed. The mean age and body mass index (BMI) of patients in these studies were 40.9 ± 4.5 years and 47.6 ± 5.6 kg/m², respectively. Among the patient cohort, approximately 72% were female, and 20.6% had preoperative gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD). The authors described prescribing proton-pump inhibitors (PPI) prophylaxis to 14.1% of patients after surgery. Two hundred twenty-eight patients were reported to have MU. The incidence of MU was 2.59% (95% CI 1.89-3.52), of which 53 patients presented within 12 months, 24 patients presented after 31 months, and five patients after 6 years. One hundred forty-six patients did not have presentation time documented. Sixty-five patients were described to have MU diagnosed on endoscopy, of which 54 were symptomatic and 11 were asymptomatic. The authors were, however, not specific on the choice of investigation for the remaining 163 patients. Of patients, 89.7% were treated conservatively with PPIs, whilst 10.3% had surgery to treat MU.

Marginal ulcer is an uncommon complication following OAGB. The majority of patients are treated conservatively with PPIs. Larger, well-designed studies reporting on risk factors, investigation, and management of MU following OAGB are warranted.