Examining effects of sleeve gastrectomy in an urban youth population

Background: Extensive evidence demonstrates the positive health effects of metabolic and bariatric surgery (MBS) in adolescents, including a reduction in body mass index (BMI) and improvements in cardiometabolic health. However, studies often lack generalizability due to their inclusion of predominately non-Hispanic White and privately insured patients. Methods: This retrospective study aims to provide insight into MBS outcomes for an urban youth population. Results: All groups showed a statistically significant improvement in BMI, HgbA1c, HDL, and triglyceride levels, postoperatively. Postoperative BMI did not differ between Non-Hispanic and Hispanic participants (P = 0.45) or between publicly and privately insured patients (P = 0.52). There was a statistically significantly lower postoperative HgbA1c in non-Hispanic participants compared to Hispanic participants (P = 0.01) and a statistically significantly lower postoperative Systolic blood pressure (SBP) in privately insured patients compared to publicly insured patient (P = 0.02). No other significant differences were detected between privately/publicly insured and Hispanic/non-Hispanic outcomes at 12 months postoperatively. Conclusion: In our urban youth patient population, MBS resulted in significant improvement in BMI across all groups. Notably, there were no statistically significant differences in preoperative characteristics (BMI, HgbA1, LDL, HDL, triglycerides, total cholesterol, SBP or DBP). However, postoperative differences in HgbA1c and SBP were detected between groups. The reasons behind these differences remain unclear, emphasizing the need for further research with greater population variability. This study underscores the importance of increasing generalizability in studies of MBS to fully understand outcomes in underrepresented groups.