Bariatric Surgery in the Pediatric Patient
Type 2 diabetes, previously called adult-onset diabetes, is now seen in children and teenagers as a complication of obesity.
Obstructive sleep apnea, hypertension, dyslipidemias, and cardiovascular risk factors are comorbidities now appearing in obese children.
About half of teenagers presenting for bariatric surgery have had a parent who underwent weight loss surgery.
The success rate of non-operative weight loss falls dramatically and linearly from age 6 to 16; a severely obese teenager may have only a 1% chance of losing significant weight with lifestyle interventions.
Lifestyle management research defines success as 5–10% total body weight loss, whereas bariatric surgery in teens achieves about 30% weight loss at 3–5 years.
Caloric restriction is the primary mechanism for weight loss; exercise is more effective for maintaining weight loss once achieved.
Orlistat is the only FDA-approved weight-loss drug for pediatrics, causing greasy stools and achieving only about 2% weight loss.
Topiramate and phentermine, approved for adults, affect appetite and satiety pathways in teenagers identically to adults and are used off-label.
Most U.S. bariatric surgeons limit surgery to teenagers (youngest reported case age 13) to ensure physiologic maturity and avoid harm to development.
Cites a guidelineMarc Harmon7:13
A colleague in Saudi Arabia has performed weight loss surgery on children as young as 6–7 with reported good long-term results.
Surgery can prevent diabetes in adolescents with elevated blood sugar who are not yet diabetic.
Adult bariatric studies show a longevity benefit for surgery in morbid obesity.
Most insurance plans covering bariatric surgery require a 6-month period of medically supervised weight loss before surgery.
Cites a guidelineTodd Ponsky10:08
Patients are put through 'surgery school' during the 6-month preoperative period to teach them about the surgery, nutrition, risks, and benefits, ensuring informed, non-coerced consent.
Cites a guidelineTodd Ponsky10:08
A multidisciplinary team for adolescent bariatric surgery includes pediatric endocrinology, gastroenterology, psychology (2), exercise physiology (2), nutrition (2), and surgery.
Cites a guidelineMarc Harmon12:12
Patients may be in a medical obesity program for 3 years before considering surgery, allowing the surgical team to build longitudinal relationships with families.
Cites a guidelineMarc Harmon12:12
Many patients who need bariatric surgery lack insurance coverage due to policy exclusions, even when surgery is medically indicated.
Surgeons advocate for patients when insurance denies coverage but it is not an absolute exclusion.
Cites a guidelineTodd Ponsky16:09
Teens with chaotic lives, uncontrolled medical problems, or untreated psychiatric illness may not be ready for surgery and require preparation by the multidisciplinary team.
Syndromic obesity and monogenic obesity (single-gene mutations driving appetite) account for 6–7% of severely obese children by age 10; outcomes with bariatric surgery in this group are mixed and require further study.
Roux-en-Y gastric bypass has the longest track record in adults and teenagers.
Adjustable gastric band has a high reoperation rate in teenagers and adults and is no longer widely offered.
Vertical sleeve gastrectomy, originally a first-stage procedure for super-obese patients, now shows good initial weight loss and comorbidity resolution at 3–4 years in adults and teens.
In 2015, sleeve gastrectomy was performed in 80% of adolescent bariatric cases, gastric bypass in 20%, and virtually no bands.
Sleeve gastrectomy and gastric bypass show very comparable weight loss and comorbidity resolution results in teenagers.
Gastric bypass is preferred for patients with hypothalamic obesity (e.g., post-brain tumor, pan-hypopituitarism) because sleeve and band have shown inferior weight loss in this biologically driven obesity.
Theoretical and measured risks of sleeve gastrectomy are lower than gastric bypass in teenagers and adults.
Sleeve gastrectomy is performed laparoscopically, starting 4–6 cm proximal to the pylorus, mobilizing the greater curvature to the diaphragm, and stapling along a 36–42 Fr bougie to the angle of His.
A 25 cm clamp can be used to standardize sleeve geometry, ensure complete fundus mobilization, and prevent leaving excess fundus that can cause reflux.
The upper spinal firing near the GE junction is the most common site for leaks and the thinnest part of the stomach.