High risk alcohol use after sleeve gastrectomy

• Main Author: Wong, Emily Katherine
• Other Authors: Whitney, Elizabeth
• Language: en_US
• Published: 2018
• Subjects: Medicine
• Online Access: https://hdl.handle.net/2144/31307

Obesity is a major health problem associated with a plethora of health risks and a high economic cost in the United States. While non-surgical treatment options exist, surgical treatments have been shown to provide better success with weight-loss long term. Despite its success, an early type of weight loss surgery (WLS) called Roux-en-Y Gastric Bypass (RYGB) has been linked to a higher risk of alcohol consumption post-operatively; however, the potential risk between the newer, more commonly performed surgery, sleeve gastrectomy, has yet to be explored. This pilot study conducted at the Bariatric Center at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston, Massachusetts, will provide preliminary data on high-risk alcohol use before and after sleeve gastrectomy (SG). Patients were interviewed regarding eating and drinking behaviors before and after SG using modified versions of the Three Factor Eating Questionnaire Revised-18 and the Alcohol Use Disorder Identification Test-C respectively. In this interim analysis, 37 of 70 eligible subjects underwent the baseline questionnaire (52.9% participation) and out of the 9 participants who had 3-month follow-ups, 8 participants completed their interview (88.9% retention). The overall prevalence of high-risk drinkers at baseline was 27%. Among the 8 participants who completed the 3-month follow-up, 1 reported high-risk drinking baseline and none reported high risk alcohol use at follow-up. In conclusion, although 27% of patients were high-risk drinkers at baseline, none of the patients were high-risk drinkers at the 3-month follow-up. Future studies investigating the change of alcohol use after longer-time periods after weight loss surgery are necessary in order to better assess if there is an increased alcohol use after sleeve gastrectomy.