Importance Severe obesity in childhood is a major health problem with few effective treatments. Weight loss surgery (WLS) is being used to treat severely obese adolescents, although with very limited data regarding surgical safety for currently used, minimally-invasive procedures. Objective To assess preoperative clinical characteristics perioperative safety outcomes of severely obese adolescents undergoing WLS. Design This prospective, multi-site observational study enrolled from 2007 through 2012. Setting This study was conducted at 5 academic referral centers in the U.S Participants Consecutive subjects ≤ age 19 years who were approved to undergo (n=277) were offered enrollment into the study; 13 declined participation and 22 did not undergo surgery after enrollment thus the final analysis cohort consisted of 242 individuals. There were no withdrawals. Main Outcomes & Measures This analysis examined preoperative anthropometrics, comorbid conditions, and major and minor complications occurring within 30 days of operation. All data were collected in a standardized fashion. Re-operations and hospital re-admissions were adjudicated by independent reviewers to assess relatedness to the WLS procedure. Results Mean age of participants was 17.1±1.6 years and the median BMI was 50.5 kg/m2. Fifty-one percent demonstrated four or more major co-morbid conditions. Laparoscopic Roux-en-Y gastric bypass, vertical sleeve gastrectomy, and adjustable gastric banding were performed in 66%, 28%, and 6% of subjects, respectively. There were no deaths during the initial hospitalization or within 30 days of operation; major complications (eg., reoperation) were seen in 19 subjects (8%). Minor complications (eg., readmission for dehydration) were noted in 36 subjects (15%). All re-operations and 85% of re-admissions were related to WLS. Conclusions & Relevance In this series, adolescents with severe obesity presented with abundant comorbid conditions. We observed a favorable short-term complication profile, supporting the early postoperative safety of WLS in select adolescents. Further longitudinal study of this cohort will permit accurate assessment of long-term outcomes for adolescents undergoing bariatric surgery.

No abstract

Effective outcomes in cardiothoracic surgical research using rodents are dependent upon adequate techniques for intubation and mechanical ventilation. Multiple methods are available for intubation of the rat; however, not all techniques are appropriate for survival studies. This article presents a refinement of intubation techniques and a simplified mechanical ventilation setup necessary for intrathoracic surgical procedures using volatile anesthetics. The procedure is defined and complications of the procedure are elucidated that provide a justification for animal numbers needed for initiating new studies. Lewis rats weighing 178-400 g (287 +/- 44) were anesthetized using Enflurane and intubated with a 16-G angiocatheter using transillumination. Mechanical ventilation (85 bpm, 2.5 mL TV, enflurane 1.5-2%) maintained adequate sedation for completion of an intrathoracic procedure. Complications of the intubation and ventilation included mortality from anesthetic overdose, intubation difficulty, pneumothorax, traumatic extubation, and ventilation disconnection. Anesthetic agents and their related effects on the rat heart and reflexes are compared. This article also underscores the importance of refinement, reduction, and replacement in the context of cardiothoracic surgery using rodent models.

No abstract

Background Regular follow-up after bariatric surgery is important to assess the clinical status. Various factors could influence retention (i.e., compliance with clinical follow-up). The present analysis tested the hypothesis that the distance from the center will influence clinical retention for adolescent bariatric surgery patients. Our aim was to determine whether the distance to the clinic, and other patient characteristics, would predict clinical follow-up compliance. The present study was conducted at a tertiary care, free-standing children’s hospital. Methods The Follow-up of Adolescent Bariatric Surgery (FABS) study is a single-center cohort study collecting demographic and clinical information. The subjects’ addresses were geocoded, and the distance to the clinic was calculated. A generalized estimating equations model was used to examine follow-up visit compliance. Results A total of 71 subjects underwent Roux-en- gastric bypass surgery (RYGB), with a mean body mass index of 59 kg/m2. The average distance to the clinic was 98 miles. Retention declined over time (6 mo, 94%; 1 yr, 89%; 2 yr, 69%; P < .01); however, distance was not associated with retention (P = .68). Age at surgery was inversely related to retention (P = .04). Conclusion Compliance with clinical follow-up decreased 1 and 2 years after RYGB in adolescents. The distance from the center was not associated with follow-up regimen compliance. However, increasing age was associated with decreased retention. Additional research should focus on determining the modifiable factors that influence retention.