Vertical banded gastroplasty at more than 5 years.

BACKGROUND

Optimal evaluation of the results of surgery for morbid obesity requires a long-term follow-up for at least 5 years.

METHODS

One hundred patients were operated by vertical banded gastroplasty (VBG) and revised with a follow-up of no less than 5 years. Sixty patients were morbidly obese with a body mass index (BMI) of between 40 and 50 kg/m2, and 40 were super-obese with a BMI of >50 kg/m2. Follow-up included 93 patients (93%).

RESULTS

Initial surgical mortality was nil. Twenty-five patients required surgery for complications related to the technique (25%) and one patient died due to pulmonary embolism after a re-stapling operation. The percentage excess weight loss was 54.3%, and the BMI was 33 kg/m2 for the 84 patients followed to 5 years post VBG. Only 40 out of 92 patients (43.5%), obtained the weight loss benefit due to the operation. None of them is able to eat a regular diet, and the quality of food intake has been severely affected in some of them.

CONCLUSIONS

VBG is, in our experience, a safe and technically simple operation, but the long-term results are questionable. The reoperation rate was high, and weight loss and quality of life are superior with other operations.