Early weight loss as a predictor of 3-year weight loss and weight regain in patients with good compliance after sleeve gastrectomy

Background: Sleeve gastrectomy (SG) is the most common surgery for severe obesity. Patients lose weight post SG and regain some weight in the following years. Early weight loss predicts weight loss after SG. However, etiologies of weight loss and regain after SG remain unclear. Objectives: To investigate the effects of early weight loss on medium-term weight regain post SG. Setting: Two university hospitals in Taiwan. Methods: Patients with records within 1 and at 3 years after SG were enrolled retrospectively. Preoperative clinical variables and percentage of total weight loss (%TWL) were analyzed. Weight regain was defined as a weight increase from 1 year postoperatively of >25% of the lost weight. Linear and multiple logistic regression were applied to examine the associations of early weight loss, weight loss, and weight regain. Results: A total of 363 patients were included. Body mass indexes before and 1, 3, 6, 12, and 36 months postoperatively were 40.7 ± 6.8 kg/m², 36.6 ± 6.2 kg/m², 33.5 ± 5.8 kg/m², 30.9 ± 5.5 kg/m², 28.4 ± 5.2, and 29.3 ± 5.4 kg/m², respectively. At 3 years after SG, 73 patients (20.1%) had weight regain. In multivariate linear analyses, initial age, waist circumference, type 2 diabetes, and %TWL at 1 or 3 months were associated with either 1-year or 3-year %TWL. Multiple logistic regression revealed %TWL at 3 months to be a predictor for 3-year weight regain after SG (odds ratio,.927; P =.02). Conclusion: Early weight loss predicted weight loss and regain 3 years after SG. Early lifestyle and behavioral interventions are suggested in patients at high risk of poor weight loss and weight regain outcomes after SG.