The Impact of Small Bowel Resection on the Incidence of Stomal Stenosis and Marginal Ulcer After Gastric Bypass

Background: Stomal stenosis (SS) and marginal ulcer (MU) are reported to occur in 9-20% and 2-13%, respectively, of patients undergoing gastric bypass for morbid obesity. It is hypothesized that decreasing tension on the gastrojejunostomy by performing limited small bowel resection (SBR) would decrease ischemia, thereby decreasing the likelihood of SS and MU. Methods: A retrospective review of 150 consecutive gastric bypass patients operated by one surgeon from 1993 to 1996 was performed. The incidence of SS and MU was compared in patients with and without SBR. Results: The overall rate of SS was 24.0% and that of MU was 9.3%: the incidence of both was 2.0%. The incidence of SS in patients without SBR was 26.9% and with SBR was 19.6%. The incidence of MU in patients without SBR was 8.9% and with SBR was 9.8%. Neither result was statistically significant by Fisher's exact test. Conclusion: There is a trend towards a decrease in the incidence of SS in gastric bypass patients with concomitant SBR although this did not reach clinical significance.     

肥胖对儿童骨骼发育的影响

对89名单纯性肥胖儿童做了手腕部骨龄发育的病例对照研究。结果表明:(1)肥胖儿童骨龄提前(平均男孩提前1.02岁,女孩提前0.74岁,P<0.001)。(2)肥胖儿童骨骼发育速度比正常儿童快(平均男孩快0.117y/a,女孩快0.09y/a,P<0.001)。(3)男孩肥胖度与骨龄增值之间以及骨龄与身高之间均存在有同向变化关系。     

Gastric Bypass for Morbid Obesity: a Standard Surgical Technique by Consensus

Background: The gastric bypass operation has evolved since 1966 when it was first introduced. The purpose of this study was to determine the present state of gastric bypass by consensus among the members of the American Society for Bariatric Surgery (ASBS). Method: A questionnaire was sent to all members of the ASBS. Forty-three percent responded reporting over 41,200 cases. Results: Results were analyzed by using χ² tests with a null hypothesis. Surgeons agreed on several technical aspects, preferring a vertical to a horizontal stapleline; estimating, rather than measuring, the pouch volume at an average of 22 cc. Few surgeons divide the short gastric vessels, and only 25% of surgeons polled use a restrictive ring or band proximal to the gastroenterostomy. Most surgeons calibrate the gastroenterostomy, reporting a preferred average diameter of 12.3 cm. There was no consensus regarding forming the gastroenterostomy, 58% preferring hand-sewn and 42% stapled anastomoses. There was no consensus regarding dividing the gastric pouch from the bypassed stomach: Conclusion: The preferred gastric bypass is vertical, with the pouch estimated at 20-25 cc, and the gastroenterostomy calibrated at 12 mm diameter. The short gastric vessels need not be divided, and restrictive bands or rings are not preferred. This technique of gastric bypass should be used as the control procedure when modifications are tested in future trials. Randomized prospective studies are suggested to probe the benefits of division of the stomach pouch from the bypassed stomach.     

Obesity in youth and middle age and risk of colorectal cancer in men

To investigate an association between colon cancer and obesity during early adulthood—a potentially important period in the etiology of this disease—the authors assembled, by computer linkage, a population-based historical cohort of 52,539 men born between 1913 and 1927 residing in Hawaii (USA), for whom weight and height had been recorded in 1942–43 and 1972. Linkage of this cohort to the Hawaii Tumor Registry resulted in the identification of 737 incident cases of colorectal cancer for 1972–86. An average of 3.8 cancer-free controls were matched to each case on month and year of birth and ethnicity of the parents. A case-control analysis in each anatomic subsite of the large bowel revealed that both early and middle-age body mass increased the risk of sigmoid cancer in men in a dose-dependent fashion. The odds ratios (OR) for sigmoid cancer for the highest compared with the lowest tertiles of Quetelet index were: 2.1 (95 percent confidence interval [CI]=1.4–3.2) and 1.7 (CI=1.1–2.5), at ages 15–29 and in prediagnostic years, respectively. These associations were additive and idependent of socioeconomic status. Men who were above the median Quetelet index in 1942 and 1972 had an OR of 2.7 (CI=1.8–4.0), compared with those who were below the median in both periods. This study provides further evidence for an association of obesity with colon cancer in men and suggests that this association is limited to the sigmoid colon and may be related to both early and late events of colon carcinogenesis.The authors are with the Epidemiology Program, Cancer Research Center of Hawaii, University of Hawaii. Address correspondence to Dr Le Marchand, Epidemiology Program, Cancer Research Center of Hawaii, 1236 Lauhala Street, Suite 407, Honolulu, HI 96813, USA. This work was supported in part by Public Health Service grant 5-R29-CA44503 and contract NO1-CN-55424 from the National Cancer Institute, National Institutes of Health, Department of Health and Human Services.     

Effect of dexfenfluramine treatment on body weight,blood pressure and noradrenergic activity in obese hypertensive patients

Summary The effect of dexfenfluramine (dF) on body weight, blood pressure and noradrenergic activity were studied in 30 obese hypertensive patients randomly divided into two groups and treated for 3 months either with dF (30 mg daily; 16 subjects) or placebo (Pl; 14 subjects). 11 patients from the dF group and 9 patients given Pl completed the entire experimental protocol, including monthly visits for metabolic and hormonal measurements, as well as a bicycle exercise test with arterial catheterisation for haemodynamic and catecholamine measurements performed before and after 3 months of treatment.A progressive significant decrease in body weight, averaging 6.0 kg after 3 months was observed in the dF-treated group, whereas loss of weight in the placebo group (1.4 kg) was not significant. While blood pressure and noradrenergic activity, assessed as changes in the plasma levels and urinary excretion of norepinephrine, remained unaffected in the Pl group, a significant drop in the supine systolic and diastolic blood pressures, as well as in the resting venous norepinephrine level and in urinary norepinephrine excretion was found after the first month of dF administration. In addition, the exercise-induced rise in systolic and diastolic blood pressure, as well as in arterial plasma norepinephrine and epinephrine concentrations, was significantly reduced after 3 months of dF administration; there were no such changes in the Pl-treated group.The results of the present study indicate that, in addition to the weight-reducing effect of dexfenfluramine, its hypotensive effect may be mediated by a decrease in noradrenergic activity.     

Laparoscopically assisted gastric surgery using Dexterity Pneumo Sleeve

Background: Laparoscopic surgery has been successfully applied to several gastrointestinal procedures. Although the totally laparoscopic gastrectomy is feasible, tactile sensation and manipulation of the organ as well as the lesion are decreased when compared to open surgery. The Dexterity Pneumo Sleeve is a new device which allows the surgeon to insert a hand into the abdominal cavity while preserving the pneumoperitoneum. This device was used for patients who underwent laparoscopic gastric surgery. Methods: The first patient presented with a non-Hodgkin's lymphoma of the stomach. A laparoscopically assisted distal gastrectomy was performed with Roux-en-Y reconstruction. The second patient had a 5-cm leiomyoma involving the greater curve of the stomach, and this device was used for manipulation of the tumor. The last patient suffered from morbid obesity with its associated medical complications and a ventral hernia. The Sleeve was applied at the hernia site and a laparoscopically assisted gastric bypass was performed. Results: The Pneumo Sleeve was useful in these cases for tactile localization of the tumor and for retraction and manipulation of the stomach and surrounding upper abdominal organs. Conclusions: The utilization of this device resulted in a more easily performed dissection, resection, and anastomosis and was felt to decrease operation time. Received: 18 September 1996/Accepted: 26 December 1996     

The Workup for Bariatric Surgery Does Not Require a Routine Upper Gastrointestinal Series

Background: Morbid obesity is a serious disease that afflicts over five million Americans, threatening their health with such co-morbidities as diabetes, arthritis, pulmonary failure and stroke. Surgery is the only effective therapy, providing long-term control of weight, diabetes, pulmonary failure, and hypertension for as long as 14 years. Because the operation presents a major expense, this study examined whether X-ray examination of the gut could be omitted safely as a cost-saving measure. Methods: The records of 814 consecutive morbidly obese patients who underwent gastric bypass were reviewed to determine: (1) whether these individuals had undergone an upper gastro-intestinal (GI) series, and (2) if these studies influenced therapy or caused cancellation or postponement of surgery. Results: Of the 814 patients, 657 (80.7%) underwent a preoperative GI radiography. Of these examinations, 393 (59.8%) were normal, with the following abnormalities in the remaining 264: hiatal hernia, 164; esophageal reflux, 39; Schatzki's ring, 18; small bowel diverticula, four; renal stones, four; malrotation, three; gall stones, two; pyloric ulcer, one; possible pelvic mass, one; calcified leiomyoma, one; and dysphagial lusoria, one. None of these findings resulted in cancellation or a delay in surgery. Conclusions: The upper GI series can be safely omitted from the routine preoperative evaluation of patients undergoing gastric bypass. At a cost of $741.00 per examination, this change represents significant potential savings. Similar evaluations of other routine preoperative tests may well provide a better basis for the evaluation of these complex patients.     

Outcome Following Bariatric Surgery in Super versus Morbidly Obese Patients: Does Weight Matter?

Background: Numerous investigators have attempted to identify prognostic indicators for successful outcome following bariatric surgery. The purpose of this study was to determine whether degree of obesity affects outcome in super obese [>225% ideal body weight (IBW)] versus morbidly obese patients (160-225% IBW) undergoing gastric restrictive/bypass procedures. Methods: Since 1984, 157 patients underwent either gastric bypass or vertical banded gastroplasty. Super obese (78) and morbidly obese (79) patients were followed prospectively, documenting outcome and complications. Results: Super obese patients reached maximum weight loss 3 years following bariatric surgery, exhibiting a decrease in body mass index (BMI) from 61 to 39 kg/m² and an average loss of 42% excess body weight (EBW). Morbidly obese patients had a decrease in BMI from 44 to 31 kg/m² and carried 39% EBW at 1 year. After their respective nadirs, each group began to regain the lost weight with the super obese exhibiting a current BMI of 45 kg/m² (61% EBW) versus 34 kg/m² (52% EBW) in the morbidly obese at 72 months cumulative follow-up. Currently, loss of 50% or more of EBW occurred in 53% of super obese patients versus 72% of morbidly obese (P < 0.01). Twenty-six percent of super obese patients returned to within 50% of ideal body weight (IBW) while 71% of morbidly obese were able to reach this goal (P < 0.01). Co-morbidities and complications related to surgery were similar in each group. Conclusions: Super obese patients have a greater absolute weight loss after bariatric surgery than do morbidly obese patients. Using commonly utilized measures of success based on weight, morbidly obese patients tend to have better outcomes following bariatric surgery.     

Body fat in identical twins reared apart: Roles for genes and environment

We report analyses of data on body fat from a cohort of 34 separated monozygotic twin pairs (MZA) and a matched sample of 38 pairs of monozygotic twins reared together (MZT) originally studied by James Shields. The correlation for MZA pairs was. 61 and the correlation for MZT pairs was. 75. These correlations did not differ significantly, nor did correlations differ between MZA pairs subclassified as having been raised in relatively more or less similar environments. Our results suggest important roles for both genes and environment in the accumulation of body fat and support other adoption studies in suggesting that adult environments rather than rearing environments are the most important nongenetic determinants of levels of body fat in adults.Supported by National Institute of Mental Health Grant MH43409 to R.A.P. and a Grant in Aid from the Dight Institute of Human Genetics to I.I.G.     

Biliopancreatic Diversion: Clinical Experience

Background: Biliopancreatic diversion (BPD), by ad hoc stomach resection (AHS-BPD) has been accepted as an effective surgical treatment for morbid obesity. Methods: Between 1.1.1992 and 31.7.1996, 59 patients (54 females, five males, mean age 40.3 years, range 23-61 years) underwent AHS-BPD. Mean preoperative body-weight was 121.2 kg (range 94-160), with a mean body mass index of 48.6 (range 35-64). Three of these patients were converted from a previous vertical banded gastroplasty to AHS-BPD (one patient with stomach preservation). After at least 36 months follow-up, seven patients underwent abdominal dermolipectomy (five with associated incisional hernia repair, one with thigh dermolipectomy). Results: Mean post-operative hospital stay was 13 days (range 10-30 days). Follow-up is currently in progress in all patients. Excess body weight-loss was 78% in 33 patients with 24 months follow-up, with excellent long-term weight loss maintenance. Protein deficiency was the main specific complication, encountered in two patients (3.4%). Mortality was one patient (1.7%), due to pulmonary embolus. Conclusions: This clinical experience supports the effectiveness and safety of AHS-BPD, despite some criticism. This procedure appears to be suitable for patients with clinically severe obesity who will poorly tolerate food intake restriction but will accept long-term follow-up. Careful preoperative clinical assessment and selection of patients who will be reliable in long-term follow-up are the keys to success with AHS-BPD, both in terms of weight loss and reduction of specific metabolic complications.