Sleeve gastrectomy. An alternative surgical treatment in morbid obesity.

Abstract

Objetive: To describe the technique and show the preliminary results of this new surgical procedure for morbid obesity treatment at the Servicio de Cirugía III. Hospital Universitario de Caracas. Methods: It is a prospective and descriptive study. We describe the principles and technique and show the preliminary results in eighteen patients with morbid obesity and surgical treatment indication in whom we performed a laparoscopic sleeve gastrectomy. Results: In all cases the procedure was perfomed laparoscopically as described. The mean operative time was 114 minutes. Procedure associated complications reported was atelectasias (16,6%) and a case of gastric fistula (5,5%), no reoperation was required. At 3 month of following time the mean excess weight loss percentage is 45% with reduction of comorbid conditions. Conclusions: The sleeve gastrectomy seems to be a safety and effective procedure for morbid obesity treatment and should be considered as a surgical option in the bariatric field. However, long term follow-up studies are required.