Reply to Schlottmann et al.

Abstract

I would like to thank Dr Francisco Schlottmann and his co-authors for their interest in my paper, entitled “5-year follow-up at an accredited community bariatric practice: what is an acceptable follow-up rate?” Dr Schlottman et al. uses this occasion as a call to action, and correctly terms the lack of long-term follow-up the “Achilles Heel” of metabolic and bariatric surgery [ 1 Schlottmann F, Sarr M, Fernando A. Herbella FA, Patti MG. Postoperative Long-Term Follow-up: The Achilles’ Heel of Bariatric Surgery. Letter to editor. Surg Obes Relat Dis. {typesetters please complete this reference which is from this issue}. Google Scholar ]. They correctly point out the dismal worldwide follow-up of bariatric patients [ 2 Himpens J, Ramos A, Welbourn R, Kinsman R, Walton P. Fourth IFSO Global Registry Report 2018. Dendrite Clinical Systems Ltd, Henley-on-Thames, RG9 1AY, UKISBN 978–0– 9929942-7-3 2018. Google Scholar ]. Even in countries with socialized health care, follow-up is poor. For example, in Sweden, there are regional differences in follow up with some areas reporting only 15% follow-up at 2 years [ 3 Zaigham H. Ekelund M. Regnér S. Olsson Å. Abdominal pain after gastric bypass in the acute general surgical care setting. Surg Obes Relat Dis. 2020 Dec; 16 (Epub 2020 Jul 16. PMID: 32839123): 2058-2067https://doi.org/10.1016/j.soard.2020.07.008 Abstract Full Text Full Text PDF PubMed Scopus (7) Google Scholar ]. Bariatric Surgery. Need for data rather than opinions.Surgery for Obesity and Related DiseasesPreviewWeight loss surgery is a highly effective treatment for patients with morbid obesity, and over the last decade the number of bariatric operations has increased steadily. Bariatric surgery not only decreases the body mass index but has also a positive effect on patients’ comorbidities, such as type 2 diabetes, hypertension, and sleep apnea, thus extending life expectancy 1. Moreover, bariatric surgery has been associated with a significantly lower incidence of obesity-associated cancer and cancer-related mortality 2. Full-Text PDF