Flavio Kawamoto

Early complications in bariatric surgery: incidence, diagnosis and treatment.

CONTEXT Bariatric surgery has proven to be the most effective method of treating severe obesity. Nevertheless, the acceptance of bariatric surgery is still questioned. The surgical complications observed in the early postoperative period following surgeries performed to treat severe obesity are similar to those associated with other major surgeries of the gastrointestinal tract. However, given the more frequent occurrence of medical comorbidities, these patients require special attention in the early postoperative follow-up. Early diagnosis and appropriate treatment of these complications are directly associated with a greater probability of control. METHOD The medical records of 538 morbidly obese patients who underwent surgical treatment (Roux-en-Y gastric bypass surgery) were reviewed. Ninety-three (17.2%) patients were male and 445 (82.8%) were female. The ages of the patients ranged from 18 to 70 years (average = 46), and their body mass indices ranged from 34.6 to 77 kg/m2. RESULTS Early complications occurred in 9.6% and were distributed as follows: 2.6% presented bleeding, intestinal obstruction occurred in 1.1%, peritoneal infections occurred in 3.2%, and 2.2% developed abdominal wall infections that required hospitalization. Three (0.5%) patients experienced pulmonary thromboembolism. The mortality rate was 0,55%. CONCLUSION The incidence of early complications was low. The diagnosis of these complications was mostly clinical, based on the presence of signs and symptoms. The value of the clinical signs and early treatment, specially in cases of sepsis, were essential to the favorable surgical outcome. The mortality was mainly related to thromboembolism and advanced age, over 65 years.

Preoperative weight loss in super-obese patients: study of the rate of weight loss and its effects on surgical morbidity

OBJECTIVES: The incidence of obesity and particularly super obesity, has increased tremendously. At our institution, super obesity represents 30.1% of all severely obese individuals in the bariatric surgery program. In super obesity, surgical morbidity is higher and the results are worse compared with morbid obesity, independent of the surgical technique. The primary strategy for minimizing complications in these patients is to decrease the body mass index before surgery. Preoperative weight reduction can be achieved by a hypocaloric diet, drug therapy, an intragastric balloon, or hospitalization. The objective of this study was to analyze the results of a period of hospitalization for preoperative weight loss in a group of super-obese patients. METHODS: Twenty super-obese patients were submitted to a weight loss program between 2006 and 2010. The mean patient age was 46 years (range 21-59). The mean BMI was 66 kg/m2 (range 51-98) and 12 were women. The average hospital stay was 19.9 weeks and the average weight loss was 19% of the initial weight (7-37%). The average caloric intake was 5 kcal/kg/day. After the weight loss program, the patients underwent gastric bypass surgery. RESULTS: The statistical analysis revealed that after 14 weeks of treatment (15% loss of initial weight), the weight loss was not significant. All patients had satisfactory surgical recovery and were discharged after an average of 4.6 days. CONCLUSION: In super obesity, preoperative weight loss is an important method for reducing surgical risks. Hospitalization and a hypocaloric diet are safe and effective. After 14 weeks, the weight loss rate stabilized, signaling the time of surgical intervention in our study.

ENDOSCOPIC CHANGES RELATED TO GASTROESOPHAGEAL REFLUX DISEASE: COMPARATIVE STUDY AMONG BARIATRIC SURGERY PATIENTS

Background : Obesity is correlated with several comorbidities, including gastroesophageal reflux disease. Its main complications are detectable by endoscopy: erosive esophagitis and Barretts esophagus. Aim : To correlate erosive esophagitis and hiatal hernia with the degree of body mass index (BMI). Method : Was performed a retrospective analysis of 717 preoperative endoscopic reports of bariatric patients. Fifty-six (8%) presented hiatal hernia, being 44 small, nine medium and five large. Esophagitis was classified by Los Angeles classification. Results : There was no correlation between the presence and dimension of hiatal hernia with BMI. One hundred thirty-four (18.7%) patients presented erosive esophagitis. Among them, 104 (14.5%) had esophagitis grade A; 25 (3.5%) grade B; and five (0.7%) grade C. When considering only the patients with erosive esophagitis, 77.6% had esophagitis grade A, 18.7% grade B and 3.7% grade C. Were identified only two patients with Barretts esophagus (0,28%). Conclusion : There was a positive correlation between the degree of esophagitis with increasing BMI.

Do Archaea and bacteria co-infection have a role in the pathogenesis of chronic chagasic cardiopathy?

UNLABELLED Chronic cardiopathy (CC) in Chagas disease is a fibrotic myocarditis with C5b-9 complement deposition. Mycoplasma and Chlamydia may interfere with the complement response. Proteolytic enzymes and archaeal genes that have been described in Trypanosoma cruzi may increase its virulence. Here we tested the hypothesis that different ratios of Mycoplasma, Chlamydia and archaeal organisms, which are frequent symbionts, may be associated with chagasic clinical forms. MATERIALS AND METHODS eight indeterminate form (IF) and 20 CC chagasic endomyocardial biopsies were submitted to in situ hybridization, electron and immunoelectron microscopy and PCR techniques for detection of Mycoplasma pneumoniae (MP), Chlamydia pneumoniae(CP), C5b-9 and archaeal-like bodies. RESULTS MP and CP-DNA were always present at lower levels in CC than in IF (p < 0.001) and were correlated with each other only in CC. Electron microscopy revealed Mycoplasma, Chlamydia and two types of archaeal-like bodies. One had electron dense lipid content (EDL) and was mainly present in IF. The other had electron lucent content (ELC) and was mainly present in CC. In this group, ELC correlated negatively with the other microbes and EDL and positively with C5b-9. The CC group was positive for Archaea and T. cruzi DNA. In conclusion, different amounts of Mycoplasma, Chlamydia and archaeal organisms may be implicated in complement activation and may have a role in Chagas disease outcome.

Surgical Options in Type 2 Diabetes

The onset of type 2 diabetes is characterized by a nonreversible complex cycle that includes severe deleterious effects on glucose metabolism. Obesity, but mainly visceral adipose tissue accumulation, is an important factor in this process. The goals of diabetes management in clinical practice, despite the improvement over the years, are often not met. In the last 20 years, based on observations of bariatric surgery series that have shown great improvement of type 2 Diabetes in morbid obese patients, metabolic surgery has emerged as a therapeutic possibility. In 2011 the International Diabetes Federation released its position statement mentioning that bariatric surgery was an accepted option for T2DM patients with BMI ≥ 35 kg/m2 and might be considered an alternative therapy for patients with BMI ≤ 35 kg/m2 who do not respond to standard medical therapy. Metabolic/bariatric surgery includes the application of conventional bariatric procedures (Roux-en-Y gastric bypass, biliopancreatic diversion, sleeve gastrectomy) and the introduction of new procedures (ileal interposition, intestinal bipartition) designed with the specific aim of having metabolic effects, irrespective of causing massive weight loss. The reversal of T2DM occurs due to mechanisms such as the increase in insulin sensitivity associated with an improvement in beta-cell function, including recovering the first phase of insulin secretion. This recovery is a consequence of the increase of GLP-1 production, and change in circulating bile acids. Remission of diabetes is observed on the first postoperative days after the operation.