Reversal of Roux-en-Y Gastric Bypass: A Multi-Centric Analysis of Indications, Techniques, and Surgical Outcomes
Liane Plath, Marie Vannijvel, Sietske Okkema, Ellen Deleus, Aaron Lloyd, Emanuele Lo Menzo, George Tadros, Ivana Raguz, Andrés Martin, Marko Kraljević, Styliani Mantziari, Sébastien Frey, Lisa Gensthaler, Henna Sammalkorpi, J L García Galocha, Vaishnavi Sujathan, Amalia Zapata, Talar Tatarian, Tom Wiggins, Ekhlas Samir Bardisi, Jean-Philippe Goreux, Yosuke Seki, Kazunori Kasama, Jacqués Himpens, Marianne Hollyman, Richard Welbourn, Rajesh Aggarwal, Alec Beekley, Matías Sepúlveda, Antonio Torres García, Anne Juuti, Paulina Salminen, Gerhard Prager, Antonio Iannelli, Michel Suter, Ralph Peterli, Camilo Boza, Raul Rosenthal, Kelvin Higa, Matthias Lannoo, Eric J. Hazebroek, Christopher Pring, Will Hawkins, Guy Slater, Bruno Dillemans, Marco Bueter, Dániel Gerö
Abstract
Abstract Background Roux-en-Y gastric bypass may present long-term complications that require revisional surgery or even reversal to normal anatomy. Data on the indications, surgical technique, and outcomes of RYGB reversal remain scarce. Methods We identified 48 cases of RYGB reversals with complete 90-day follow-up within a multi-centric international retrospective database of elective secondary bariatric surgery. The operations were performed between 2010 and 2024 in high-volume referral centers in Europe and USA. Data were collected on body weight, associated diseases, and on surgical outcomes up to 1-year postoperatively. Results Patients were mainly female (81.3%) with a median age of 50 years (IQR 39–56). RYGB reversal was performed 7 years (median) after primary RYGB in patients with a BMI of 23.9 kg/m 2 (IQR 20–27). Half of the patients underwent at least 1 bariatric revision before the reversal. Main indications for reversal were dumping syndrome (33.3%), excessive weight loss (29.2%), marginal ulcer (14.6%), malabsorption (12.5%), and abdominal pain (10.4%). Rate of conversion to open surgery was 8.3%, and the postoperative complications during the first year reached 50%, including 31.3% Clavien-Dindo grade I–II, 16.7% grade III–IV complications, and one death. At 1 year, the mean BMI of the cohort increased by 18% to 28.25 kg/m 2 ; only 1 patient reached pre-RYGB BMI. Conclusion Although RYGB is a theoretically reversible procedure, normal anatomy is re-established only in selected cases which are refractory to medical therapy and often also to revisional bariatric surgery. RYGB reversals entail high morbidity, while the extent of recurrent weight gain at 1-year post-reversal seems to allow patients to remain below the threshold of severe obesity.