Bariatric Surgery Outcomes Seem Best When Pre-Op BMI Is Below 40

Having a body-mass index below 40 before undergoing bariatric surgery is associated with better outcomes a year later, according to a retrospective study in...

By Amy Orciari Herman

Edited by Susan Sadoughi, MD

Having a body-mass index below 40 before undergoing bariatric surgery is associated with better outcomes a year later, according to a retrospective study in JAMA Surgery.

Using a Michigan bariatric surgery database, researchers studied over 27,000 adults who underwent bariatric surgery between 2006 and 2015. Just over a third of the patients achieved a BMI below 30 at 1 year after surgery. Having a preoperative BMI below 40 was a significant predictor of this outcome: 72% of such patients achieved a BMI below 30, versus 9% of those with preoperative BMIs of 50 or higher.

Achieving a BMI below 30 was associated with higher odds of stopping lipid, blood pressure, and diabetes medications.

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LINK(S):

JAMA Surgery article (Free abstract)

JAMA Surgery commentary (Subscription required)

Background: NEJM Journal Watch General Medicine coverage of bariatric surgery vs. medication for obese diabetics (Your NEJM Journal Watch subscription required)