Assessment of the Correlation Between Preoperative and Immediate Postoperative Gastric Volume and Weight Loss After Sleeve Gastrectomy Using Computed Tomography Volumetry

BACKGROUND: Laparoscopic sleeve gastrectomy (LSG) has achieved excellent results in treatment of morbid obesity. The present study aimed to evaluate the impact of the preoperative gastric volume, volume of the remaining gastric pouch, and volume of the resected stomach on weight loss after LSG. METHODS: Patients with morbid obesity who underwent LSG were investigated by CT volumetry before and 1 week after LSG to measure the volume of the stomach before and after the procedure, and the volume of the resected stomach was also calculated. The percentage of excess weight loss (EWL) and decrease in body mass index (BMI) at 6 months postoperatively were measured and correlated with preoperative and postoperative gastric volumes. RESULTS: Forty-seven patients (44 females) were included to the study. A significant decrease in the gastric volume and BMI after LSG was noted. Preoperative gastric volume was positively correlated with preoperative BMI (r = 0.723, p < 0.00001) but not correlated with %EWL at 6 months. The volume of the remaining gastric pouch was positively correlated with BMI at 6 months postoperatively (r = 0.597, p < 0.00001) and negatively correlated with %EWL (r = -0.7495, p < 0.00001). The correlation between the size of resected stomach and %EWL was statistically insignificant, yet the mean percentage of the resected stomach was directly correlated to %EWL. CONCLUSION: The preoperative volume of the stomach was positively correlated with baseline BMI, but not correlated with %EWL. The size of the remaining gastric pouch and the percentage of the resected stomach had significant impact on %EWL after LSG.