Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the success of bariatric surgeries in patients with severe obesity

Abstract

Introduction: SARS-CoV-2 infection (COVID-19) pandemic may influence the weight outcomes of bariatric surgeries (BS). Here, we intended to compare the weight outcome of patients who underwent bariatric surgery before and during the pandemic time. Methods: In a retrospective, single-center study, the information of two groups of patients; first COVID-19_Group (n=51) consisted of those that underwent BS during the pandemic and completed a year of follow-up, second NonCOVID-19_Group included 50 patients who underwent BS and were followed up before the pandemic. All the patients’ anthropometric and obesity-related disease data were compared between groups. Results: Weight loss and the decrease of body mass index (BMI) one year after the surgery, as well as excess weight loss and total weight loss, were significantly higher in the NonCOVID-19_Group compared to the COVID-19_Group (p 0.05). Conclusion: We showed a significantly poorer weight outcome at the one-year follow-up of the BS during the pandemic compared to the pre-pandemic. These results need further investigations to determine the preventive measures and management by evaluating the associated factors.