Impact of Age on Short-Term Results of Laparoscopic Sleeve Gastrectomy

Introduction: A steady increase in the prevalence of obesity in patients over 50 years old has led to a growing number of laparoscopic sleeve gastrectomy (LSG) in this population. Yet the efficacy for those patients is still debated. We evaluated the impact of age on the short-term results of LSG. Methods: This retrospective study analyzed patients who underwent LSG between 2013 and 2020. Patients were divided into three groups: young (≤35 years, n = 35), intermediate (36-49 years, n = 58), and older age (≥50 years, n = 52). Body mass index (BMI), total weight loss (TWL), excess weight loss (EWL), and obesity-related comorbidities (ORC) were assessed 2 years after LSG. Results: The mean reduction in BMI, TWL, and EWL was 9.5 kg/m², 21%-51.7% in the "older age" group, 11.9 kg/m², 26.3%-64.6% in the "intermediate" group, and 13.3 kg/m², 30.1%-74.4% in the "young" group, respectively. The LSG failure rate (EWL <50%) was 48.1% in the "older age" group, higher than in the "young" group (14.3%) (P = .001). The rate of remission or improvement in hypertension (HTN) was 31% in the ≥50 age group, significantly lower than in the other groups (36-49 years: 58%, ≤35 years: 100%) (P = .034). There was no significant difference between the groups in terms of other ORC. 10.5% of patients were lost to follow-up. Conclusion: Age appears to have a significant negative impact on weight loss results two years after LSG, with no impact on remission or improvement in ORC other than HTN.