BACKGROUND: Duodenal switch is a choice of conversion when patients fail to lose or regain weight after Roux-en-Y gastric bypass (RYGB). This study aims to evaluate the effectiveness and safety of duodenal switch as a secondary operation for patients who presented with insufficient weight loss or weight regain after a RYGB.
METHODS: A retrospective chart review was performed on 15 patients who underwent a conversion of RYGB to single anastomosis duodeno-ileal bypass with sleeve (SADI-S) or biliopancreatic diversion with duodenal switch (BPD-DS) due to weight regain between December 31, 2013 and October 31, 2018. For the body mass index (BMI) analysis, the multilevel model for change was used.
RESULTS: Of 15 patients, 10 underwent a conversion to SADI-S, and 5 underwent a conversion to BPD-DS. Also, 7 patients underwent the conversion in two-stages, while 8 did as single-stage. One patient had a duodenal stump leak after SADI-S, and another patient had a sleeve leak after BPD-DS. One patient underwent a reoperation to increase the common channel 20 months after the conversion to BPD-DS due to malnutrition. There was no mortality. Mean percentage of total weight loss (TWL) was 18.4% at 6 months, 25.0% at 12 months, 26.4% at 18 months, and 25.7% at 24 months after the conversion. The rate of decrease in BMI was slower in SADI-S patients than in BPD-DS patients (p < 0.01), adjusting for preoperative BMI.
CONCLUSION: Conversions of RYGB to SADI-S and BPD-DS can provide significant additional weight loss. However, complications and malnutrition can develop after the conversion, and further research is needed for evaluating safety.
