Obesity-related immune responses and their impact on surgical outcomes

• Published in: International Journal of Obesity Vol. 39; no. 6; pp. 877 - 883
• Main Authors: Quante, M, Dietrich, A, ElKhal, A, Tullius, S G
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: London Nature Publishing Group UK 01.06.2015; Nature Publishing Group
• Subjects: 631/443/319/1642/393; 692/699/249/2510; 692/700/565/545/2098; Biomarkers - metabolism; Care and treatment; Complications and side effects; Contraindications; Development and progression; Epidemics; Epidemiology; Gastrointestinal surgery; Health aspects; Health Promotion and Disease Prevention; Humans; Immune response; Inflammation; Inflammation - etiology; Inflammation - immunology; Inflammation Mediators - metabolism; Internal Medicine; Lymphocytes - metabolism; Medicine; Medicine & Public Health; Metabolic Diseases; Mortality; Obesity; Obesity - complications; Obesity - epidemiology; Obesity - immunology; Patient outcomes; Postoperative Complications - immunology; Public Health; review; Risk Factors; Surgery; Surgical outcomes; Surgical Procedures, Operative - adverse effects; Treatment Outcome; United States - epidemiology; United States; United States > US; Germany
• ISSN: 0307-0565; 1476-5497
• DOI: 10.1038/ijo.2015.21

The obesity epidemic represents a critical disease burden with broad clinical consequences. At the same time, obesity has been linked to inferior surgical outcomes and considered a contraindication for some elective surgical procedures. A growing body of mechanistic evidence has accumulated linking obesity to changes of metabolism and immune responses. This concept provides an integrated inflammatory network based on the perception of obesity as a state of chronic low-grade inflammation. With a more detailed understanding of this dynamic network and mechanistic insights, novel treatment and management strategies may be developed with the goal to optimize surgical outcomes in obese patients.