Background: The purpose of this study is to compare sleeve gastrectomy (SG) and Roux-en-Y gastric bypass (RYGBP) performed in Institutions participating in IFSO-European Chapter, Center of Excellence (COE) program.
Methods: Since the initiation of the program in January 2010, 6413 SGs and 10,622 RYGBPs performed as primary procedures by December 31, 2014, with at least 12-month follow-up, were retrospectively compared.
Results: There were steadily increasing numbers of patients underwent SG from 2010 to 2015. Early (<30 days) postoperative complication rate of 3.02 % for RYGBP was significantly higher than 2.12 % seen after SG (p = 0.0006). Only two patients, one in each group, died in the first 30 postoperative days (0.016 % mortality for SG vs 0.009 % for RYGBP-NS). From SG group, 103 patients, 1.61 %, and 206 patients, 1.94 %, from RYGBP group required readmission following hospital discharge in the first 30 days following bariatric surgery-NS. From the readmitted patients in the SG group, 75.72 % were reoperated vs 50.50 % in the RYGBP group (p < 0.0001). SG patients were heavier (BMI 44.93 vs 43.96 kg/m2, p < 0.0001). However, significantly better % excess weight loss were seen following RYGBP in all postoperative years (60.36 vs 67.72 %, p = 0.002 at fifth year). Better remission rates were seen for diabetes, arterial hypertension, dyslipidemia, and sleep apnea syndrome after RYGBP in the first postoperative year.
Conclusions: Both procedures were performed with very low complications, mortality, readmissions, and reoperations rate. Better weight loss was observed following RYGBP, the first five postoperative years.
Keywords: Bariatric surgery; Center of Excellence; John Melissas and Konstantinos Stavroulakis contributed equally in this article.; Morbid obesity; Roux-en-Y gastric bypass; Sleeve gastrectomy.