To Örebro University

BACKGROUND: Laparoscopic sleeve gastrectomy (LSG) has gained increasing popularity worldwide, yet concerns persist regarding the development of gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) postoperatively.

OBJECTIVES: This study aimed to evaluate the influence of technical aspects of LSG, specifically bougie size and distance from the pylorus to resection line edge, on the risk of developing symptomatic GERD within 2years following surgery.

SETTING: Data from the Scandinavian Obesity Surgery Registry (SOReg) and the National Prescribed Drug Register were utilized for this analysis.

METHODS: A retrospective observational study was conducted encompassing all LSG patients in Sweden between 2012 and 2020 who did not receive preoperative proton pump inhibitor (PPI) prescriptions. Patients were categorized based on bougie size and pyloric distance. Regular PPI use, defined as a dispensed prescription of more than 300 tablets per year, was employed as a proxy measure of symptomatic GERD and was compared between the groups.

RESULTS: The study included 7,435 patients with complete data on dispensed PPI prescription both preoperatively and throughout the 2-year follow-up period. Information on bougie size and pyloric distance was available for 97.4% and 84.9%, respectively. Narrower bougie size and greater pyloric distance were associated with increased risk of regular PPI use postsurgery. Advanced age and female sex were independent risk factors for post-LSG regular PPI use, while initial body mass index (BMI), total weight loss (%TWL), and comorbidities showed no significant associations.

CONCLUSIONS: Using a narrow bougie and initiating resection at a greater distance from the pylorus were associated with higher risk of symptomatic de novo GERD following LSG.

Background: Oesophagectomy, a corner stone in curative treatment of oesophageal cancer, is a complex procedure with high complication rates. Postoperative gastric tube decompression is debated and some centres are abandoning routine nasogastric (NG) tube use. We hypothesised that postoperative NG tube removal is non-inferior to five days of NG tube decompression, with regard to the risk of anastomotic leak.

Methods: In this open-label, non-inferiority randomised controlled trial across 12 hospitals in Sweden, Norway, Denmark and Finland, participants treated for oesophageal or gastroesophageal junctional cancer with oesophagectomy were randomly assigned (1:1) to no postoperative NG tube or five days of NG tube decompression. Anastomotic leak was the primary outcome and secondary outcomes included pneumonia and length of hospital stay. Analyses were performed on the intention to treat and per protocol populations and non-inferiority for anastomotic leak was defined as a risk difference below 9%. ISRCTN.com registration ISRCTN39935085.

Findings: Between January 1st 2022 and March 27th 2024, 448 patients were randomly assigned, 217 to no postoperative NG tube and 231 to five days NG tube treatment. The mean age was 67.5 (standard deviation (SD) 9.8) years and 367 (81.9%) were males. Non-inferiority with regard to anastomotic leak for no NG tube decompression could not be shown with 48 patients (22.1% (95% confidence interval (CI) 16.8%, 28.2%)) having anastomotic leak compared to 35 (15.2% (95% CI 10.8%, 20.4%)) with five days of NG tube decompression, a risk difference of-7.0% (95% CI-14.4%, 0.00%), pnon-inferiority 0.30. In a Supplementary analysis, patients had a lower risk of anastomotic leak if postoperative NG decompression was used. Rate of other complications, e.g., pneumonia, were similar between groups. In a per-protocol analysis, the risk difference was-11.3% to the advantage of NG tube (95% CI, -19.1,-0.3%).

Interpretation: We could not establish safety (increased risk of anastomotic leak) and therefore do not support omission of NG tube after oesophagectomy. 

BACKGROUND: Prolonged time to surgery (TTS) after neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy (nCRT) may enable malnourished oesophageal cancer patients' nutritional status to recover better, possibly improving outcomes with fewer complications and better overall survival (OS) after oesophagectomy.

METHODS: This is a substudy within a multicentre randomised controlled trial comparing outcomes in patients with oesophageal cancer after standard TTS of 4-6 weeks to prolonged TTS of 10-12 weeks after nCRT. Patients were categorised as malnourished or non-malnourished at baseline and compared regarding weight, dysphagia, postoperative complications, and OS.

RESULTS: The mean weight from baseline to time of surgery decreased significantly in patients allocated to standard TTS (p < 0.001) while patients with prolonged TTS recovered during the extended time to similar weight as at baseline (p = 0.131). The mean dysphagia score at the time of surgery improved significantly in both groups (p < 0.001). There were no significant differences between patients allocated to standard versus prolonged TTS regarding postoperative complications, regardless of malnourishment status at baseline. No significant differences in OS after prolonged TTS compared to standard TTS, was observed in neither malnourished patients (hazard ratio, HR 1.72 (95 %, CI: 0.82-3.59, p = 0.147) nor non-malnourished patients (HR 1.26 (95 % CI:0.82-1.94, p = 0.291).

CONCLUSIONS: Prolonged TTS was associated with better weight recovery at the time of surgery compared to standard TTS. Patients malnourished at baseline did not benefit in terms of less postoperative complications after prolonged TTS.

BACKGROUND: Omentectomy has traditionally been performed in gastric cancer surgery, but omental preservation has become increasingly common. It is unclear whether omentectomy leads to additional survival benefit compared with omental preservation. This nationwide population-based cohort study aimed to assess survival and surgical outcomes comparing omental preservation to omentectomy in curative-intent gastrectomy.

METHODS: Patients were identified from the Swedish National Registry for Oesophageal and Gastric Cancer with inclusion between 2006 and 2022. The primary endpoint was overall survival assessed by a multivariable Cox proportional hazards model, adjusted for age, sex, American Society of Anesthesiologists physical status score, clinical T and N stage, type of gastrectomy, surgical approach, extent of lymphadenectomy, neoadjuvant chemotherapy, surgery year and regional cancer centre. Secondary endpoints were surgical outcomes including tumour-free resection margins, lymph node yield and postoperative complications.

RESULTS: A total of 1615 patients were included, 517 (32.0%) underwent gastrectomy with omental preservation, and 1098 (68.0%) underwent gastrectomy with omentectomy. Overall survival after omental preservation was similar compared with omentectomy in the multivariable Cox model (HR 1.00, 95% c.i. 0.83 to 1.20; P = 0.967). Omental preservation also had similar surgical outcomes including lymph node yield and postoperative morbidity rate, compared with omentectomy.

CONCLUSIONS: Omental preservation was similar to omentectomy in terms of overall survival and surgical outcomes. The results suggest that omentectomy can safely be omitted in curative-intent gastrectomy for gastric cancer.

Dumping and post-bariatric hypoglycaemia (PBH) are side effects that occur after bariatric surgery. The aim of this study was to estimate the prevalence of dumping and PBH symptoms before Roux-en-Y gastric bypass (RYGB) and sleeve gastrectomy (SG) at 6 months, 1 year, 2 years and 5 years after surgery in a Swedish population. A cross-sectional single-centre study was performed at Lindesberg Hospital, Region Örebro County, Sweden, between 2020 and 2023. The Swedish version of the Dumping Severity Scale (DSS-Swe) questionnaire, which includes eight items regarding dumping symptoms and six items regarding hypoglycaemia symptoms, was used. A total of 742 DSS-Swe questionnaires were included. The average age at surgery was 42.0 years (standard deviation [SD] = 11.9), and the average body mass index was 41.8 kg/m2 (SD = 5.9). The surgical methods consisted of RYGB (66.3%) and SG (33.7%). The proportion of RYGB patients with highly suspected dumping increased from 4.9% before surgery to 26.3% (adjusted odds ratio [OR] = 7.35, 95% confidence interval [CI] = 3.08-17.52) at the 5-year follow-up. PBH symptoms increased from 1.4% before surgery to 19.3% at the 5-year follow-up (adjusted OR = 17.88, 95% CI = 4.07-78.54). For SG patients, no significant increase in dumping or PBH symptoms was observed. In patients with persistent type 2 diabetes (T2D), there were no cases of highly suspected hypoglycaemia following RYGB or SG. Symptoms of dumping and PBH were common after RYGB, while no clear increase was observed after SG. Persistent T2D seems to be a protective factor against PBH symptoms.

BACKGROUND: There are differences in oesophageal cancer care across Sweden. According to national guidelines, all patients should be offered equal care, planned and administrated by regional multidisciplinary team meetings. The aim of the study was to investigate differences between regional multidisciplinary team meetings in Sweden regarding clinical staging and treatment recommendations for oesophageal cancer patients.

METHODS: All six Swedish regional multidisciplinary teams were each invited to retrospectively include ten consecutive oesophageal cancer cases. After anonymization, radiological investigations were presented, along with the original case-specific medical history, anew at the participating regional multidisciplinary team meetings. Estimation of clinical tumour node metastasis (TNM) classification and treatment recommendation (curative, palliative or best supportive care) were compared between multidisciplinary team meetings as well as with original assessments.

RESULTS: Five multidisciplinary teams participated and contributed a total of 50 cases presented to each multidisciplinary team. In estimations of cT-stage, the multidisciplinary teams were in total agreement in only eight of 50 cases (16%). For cN-stage, total agreement was seen in 17 of 50 cases (34%) and for cM-stage there was agreement in 34 cases (68%). For cT-stage, the overall summarized κ value was 0.57. For N-stage and M-stage the κ values were 0.66 and 0.78 respectively. Differences in appraisal were not associated with usage of positron emission tomography-computed tomography. In 15 of 50 cases (30%) the multidisciplinary teams disagreed on curative or palliative treatment.

CONCLUSION: The study shows differences in assessment of clinical TNM classification and treatment recommendations made at regional multidisciplinary team meetings. Increased interrater agreement on clinical TNM classification and management plans are essential to achieve more equal care for oesophageal cancer patients in Sweden.

Esophagectomy is a complex and complication laden procedure. Despite centralization, variations in perioparative strategies reflect a paucity of evidence regarding optimal routines. The use of nasogastric (NG) tubes post esophagectomy is typically associated with significant discomfort for the patients. We hypothesize that immediate postoperative removal of the NG tube is non-inferior to current routines. All Nordic Upper Gastrointestinal Cancer centers were invited to participate in this open-label pragmatic randomized controlled trial (RCT). Inclusion criteria include resection for locally advanced esophageal cancer with gastric tube reconstruction. A pretrial survey was undertaken and was the foundation for a consensus process resulting in the Kinetic trial, an RCT allocating patients to either no use of a NG tube (intervention) or 5 days of postoperative NG tube use (control) with anastomotic leakage as primary endpoint. Secondary endpoints include pulmonary complications, overall complications, length of stay, health related quality of life. A sample size of 450 patients is planned (Kinetic trial: https://www.isrctn.com/ISRCTN39935085). Thirteen Nordic centers with a combined catchment area of 17 million inhabitants have entered the trial and ethical approval was granted in Sweden, Norway, Finland, and Denmark. All centers routinely use NG tube and all but one center use total or hybrid minimally invasive-surgical approach. Inclusion began in January 2022 and the first annual safety board assessment has deemed the trial safe and recommended continuation. We have launched the first adequately powered multi-center pragmatic controlled randomized clinical trial regarding NG tube use after esophagectomy with gastric conduit reconstruction.

BACKGROUND: The optimal sleeve diameter and distance from the pylorus to the edge of the resection line in laparoscopic sleeve gastrectomy (LSG) remain controversial.

OBJECTIVES: To evaluate the influence of bougie size and antral resection distance from the pylorus on postoperative complications and weight-loss results in LSG.

SETTING: Nationwide registry-based study.

METHODS: This study included all LSGs performed in Sweden between 2012 and 2019. Data were obtained from the Scandinavian Obesity Surgery Registry. Reference bougie size of 35-36 Fr and an antral resection distance of 5 cm from the pylorus were compared to narrower bougie size (30-32 Fr), shorter distances (1-4 cm), and extended distances (6-8 cm) from the pylorus in assessing postoperative complications and weight loss as the outcomes of LSG. RESULTS: The study included 9,360 patients with postoperative follow-up rates of 96%, 79%, and 50% at 30 days, 1 year, and 2 years, respectively. Narrow bougie and short antral resection distance from the pylorus were significantly associated with increased postoperative weight loss. Bougie size was not associated with increased early or late complications. However, short antral resection distance was associated with high risk of overall early complications [odds ratio: 1.46 (1.17-1.82, P = .001)], although no impact on late complications at 1 and 2 years was observed.

CONCLUSIONS: Using a narrow bougie and initiating resection closer to the pylorus were associated with greater maximum weight loss. Although a closer resection to the pylorus was associated with an increased risk of early postoperative complications, no association was observed with the use of narrow bougie for LSG.

BACKGROUND: Socioeconomic status may influence weight loss, postoperative complications, and health-related quality of life after bariatric surgery. Chronic use of opioid analgesics is a known risk after bariatric surgery, but whether socioeconomic factors are associated with new chronic use of opioid analgesics has not been investigated in depth.

OBJECTIVES: The aim of this study was to identify socioeconomic factors associated with the development of new chronic use of opioid analgesics after gastric bypass surgery.

SETTING: All hospitals performing bariatric surgery in Sweden.

METHODS: This was a retrospective cohort study with prospectively collected data including all primary gastric bypass procedures in Sweden between 2007 and 2015. Data were collected from the Scandinavian Obesity Surgery Registry, the Swedish Prescribed Drug Register, and Statistics Sweden. The primary outcome was new chronic opioid use.

RESULTS: Of the 44,671 participants, 1438 patients became new chronic opioid users. Longer education (secondary education; odds ratio [OR] = .71; 95% CI, .62-.81) or higher education (OR = .45; 95% CI, .38-.53), higher disposable income (20th-50th percentile: OR = .75; 95% CI, .66-.85; 50th-80th percentile: OR = .50; 95% CI, .43-.58; and the highest 80th percentile: OR = .40; 95% CI, .32-.51) were significantly associated with lower risk for new chronic opioid use. Being a second-generation immigrant (OR = 1.54; 95% CI, 1.24-1.90), being on a disability pension or early retirement (OR = 3.04; 95% CI, 2.67-3.45), receiving social benefits (OR = 1.88; 95% CI, 1.59-2.22), being unemployed for <100 days (OR = 1.25; 95% CI, 1.08-1.45), being unemployed for >100 days (OR = 1.41; 95% CI, 1.16-1.71), and being divorced or a widow or widower (OR = 1.35; 95% CI, 1.17-1.55) were significantly associated with a higher risk for chronic opioid use.

CONCLUSION: Given that long-term opioid use has detrimental effects after bariatric surgery, it is important that information and follow-up are optimized for patients with shorter education, lower income, and disability pension or early retirement because they are at an increased risk of new chronic opioid analgesics use.

IMPORTANCE: Short-term and midterm data suggest that mesenteric defects closure during laparoscopic Roux-en-Y gastric bypass (LRYGB) surgery reduces the risk of internal herniation with small bowel obstruction (SBO) but may increase risk of kinking of the jejunojejunostomy in the early postoperative period. However, to our knowledge, there are no clinical trials reporting long-term results from this intervention in terms of risk for SBO or opioid use.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate long-term safety and efficacy outcomes of closure of mesenteric defects during LRYGB.

DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS: This randomized clinical trial with a 2-arm, parallel, open-label design included patients with severe obesity scheduled for LRYGB bariatric surgery at 12 centers in Sweden from May 1, 2010, through November 14, 2011, with 10 years of follow-up after the intervention. INTERVENTIONS: During the operation, patients were randomly assigned 1:1 to closure of mesenteric defects beneath the jejunojejunostomy and at the Petersen space using nonabsorbable running sutures during LRYGB or to nonclosure.

MAIN OUTCOME AND MEASURES: The primary outcome was reoperation for SBO. New incident, chronic opioid use was a secondary end point as a measure of harm.

RESULTS: A total of 2507 patients (mean [SD] age, 41.7 [10.7] years; 1863 female [74.3%]) were randomly assigned to closure of mesenteric defects (n = 1259) or nonclosure (n = 1248). After censoring for death and emigration, 1193 patients in the closure group (94.8%) and 1198 in the nonclosure group (96.0%) were followed up until the study closed. Over a median follow-up of 10 years (IQR, 10.0-10.0 years), a reoperation for SBO from day 31 to 10 years after surgery was performed in 185 patients with nonclosure (10-year cumulative incidence, 14.9%; 95% CI, 13.0%-16.9%) and in 98 patients with closure (10-year cumulative incidence, 7.8%; 95% CI, 6.4%-9.4%) (subhazard ratio [SHR], 0.42; 95% CI, 0.32-0.55). New incident chronic opioid use was seen among 175 of 863 opioid-naive patients with nonclosure (10-year cumulative incidence, 20.4%; 95% CI, 17.7%-23.0%) and 166 of 895 opioid-naive patients with closure (10-year cumulative incidence, 18.7%; 95% CI, 16.2%-21.3%) (SHR, 0.90; 95% CI, 0.73-1.11).

CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE: This randomized clinical trial found long-term reduced risk of SBO after mesenteric defects closure in LRYGB. The findings suggest that routine use of this procedure during LRYGB should be considered.

TRIAL REGISTRATION: ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT01137201.