Evaluation of Weight Loss on a Low-Calorie Meal Replacement Diet as a Potential Predictor of Weight Loss After Laparoscopic Adjustable Gastric Banding Surgery in Adolescents

Abstract

Predicting weight loss after laparoscopic adjustable gastric banding (LAGB) from preoperative factors has been challenging. This study aimed to determine the relationship between weight loss from a preoperative low-calorie meal replacement diet (LCMRD) and weight loss after LAGB in a cohort of morbidly obese adolescents. Fifty-one subjects (86% female, 61% Caucasian, mean age 16years, mean weight 140.1kg) received 2weeks of LCMRD prior to LAGB. We utilized Pearson's correlation coefficients to test the relationship between weight loss on a LCMRD and weight loss at 3, 6, and 12months after LAGB. Mean weight loss was 5.7kg (standard deviation (SD) 2.5) during the LCMRD period and 17.4kg (SD 12.4) at 1year postoperatively. Having a higher baseline weight (p < 0.01) and losing less weight prior to LCMRD (p < 0.05) was associated with more weight loss during LCMRD. Weight loss during LCMRD was not significantly associated with postoperative weight loss at any time point. Weight loss during LCMRD was not significantly associated with postoperative weight loss in our study. Less variability in adherence, less influence of genetic and biological potential, and more diuresis during a short course of LCMRD compared to in the postoperative period may explain this lack of association.