Etiology of Leaks Following Sleeve Gastrectomy: Current Evidence.

PURPOSE

The purpose of this paper is to study the causes of leaks following sleeve gastrectomy (SG).

MATERIALS AND METHODS

Pubmed was searched during January 2016 for publications reporting leak after SG. A total of 205 publications were identified, of which 17 papers were selected.

RESULTS

In about 3018 patients, reinforcement was used compared with 4595 patients, in whom no reinforcement was applied; both groups were representing matched bariatric populations. The use of reinforcement/buttressing has resulted in different rates of leaks ranging from 0% to 3.9%; whereas with no reinforcement/buttressing, the leak rate was 0.16% to 3.5%. The use of reinforcement/buttressing did not result in reduction of leak to a statistical significance although the trend was suggesting so (P=0.06), whereas no reinforcement/buttressing did not statistically increase the leak rate (P=0.10).

CONCLUSIONS

No statistical significant difference of leak with or without reinforcement. This mean case complexity and surgical technique and experience are the sole factors for leaks following SG.