Current status of laparoscopic bariatric/metabolic surgery in Japan: The sixth nationwide survey by the Japan Consortium of Obesity and Metabolic Surgery

• Published in: Asian journal of endoscopic surgery Vol. 14; no. 2; pp. 170 - 177
• Main Authors: Ohta, Masayuki, Kasama, Kazunori, Sasaki, Akira, Naitoh, Takeshi, Seki, Yosuke, Inamine, Susumu, Oshiro, Takashi, Doki, Yuichiro, Seto, Yasuyuki, Hayashi, Hideki, Uyama, Ichiro, Takiguchi, Shuji, Kojima, Kazuyuki, Mori, Toshiyuki, Inomata, Masafumi, Kitagawa, Yuko, Kitano, Seigo
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Kyoto, Japan John Wiley & Sons Australia, Ltd 01.04.2021; Wiley Subscription Services, Inc
• Subjects: bariatric surgery; Consortia; Gastrointestinal surgery; laparoscopic bariatric surgery; Laparoscopy; metabolic surgery; Metabolism; Original; Weight control; Japan; laparoscopic bariatric surgery; bariatric surgery; metabolic surgery
• ISSN: 1758-5902; 1758-5910
• DOI: 10.1111/ases.12836

Introduction Laparoscopic bariatric procedures have been performed in Japan since 2000. Laparoscopic sleeve gastrectomy (LSG) has been fully covered by National Health Insurance since 2014, and it has been increasingly performed recently. The Japan Consortium of Obesity and Metabolic Surgery conducts a nationwide survey on laparoscopic bariatric/metabolic surgery every 2 years. Methods The survey was sent by post or email to 97 Japanese institutions in January 2020. Results From 2000 to 2019, a total of 3669 laparoscopic bariatric/metabolic procedures were performed in 64 institutions. The most popular procedure was LSG (n = 2866), followed by LSG with duodenojejunal bypass (LSG‐DJB, n = 337) and laparoscopic Roux‐en‐Y gastric bypass (LRYGB, n = 280). Morbidity and reoperation rates were, respectively, 29.8% and 11.8% for LRYGB, 16.8% and 2.8% for LSG, and 13.6% and 6.6% for LSG‐DJB. At 5 years after the procedures, the percentage of excess weight loss was 78% for LRYGB, 66% for LSG, and 80% for LSG‐DJB. Conclusion This nationwide survey clearly showed that laparoscopic bariatric/metabolic surgery has been safely and effectively performed for 20 years in Japan.