Bowel function and gastrointestinal symptoms after laparoscopic sleeve gastrectomy: a cross-sectional comparison across postoperative time groups

INTRODUCTION: Laparoscopic sleeve gastrectomy (LSG) is currently the most commonly performed bariatric procedure worldwide. Although LSG is widely performed, postoperative gastrointestinal symptoms and bowel function disturbances may negatively affect patients’ quality of life. Nevertheless, data regarding patient-reported gastrointestinal function at different postoperative periods remain limited. This study aimed to evaluate bowel function and gastrointestinal symptoms after LSG using patient-reported outcome measures and to compare symptom burden across independent postoperative time groups.
METHODS: This cross-sectional observational study included 140 patients who had previously undergone LSG. Participants were stratified into four postoperative time groups according to the time elapsed since surgery (0–1 month, 1–3 months, 3–12 months, and >12 months). Gastrointestinal symptoms and bowel function were evaluated using the Patient-Reported Outcomes–Digestive Recovery After Gastrointestinal Surgery (PRO-diGI) questionnaire. Only the bowel function score was converted to a 0–100 scale, whereas the remaining domain scores were analyzed as raw summed scores. Comparisons among postoperative time groups were performed using appropriate nonparametric statistical tests.
RESULTS: A total of 140 patients (48 males, 34.3%; 92 females, 65.7%) with a median age of 37 years (95% CI: 33.02–40.36; range, 18–62 years) were included. Demographic characteristics were comparable across the postoperative time groups (p>0.05). No statistically significant differences were observed among the groups in bowel function scores, upper gastrointestinal symptoms, lower gastrointestinal symptoms, eating behavior changes, or general well-being domains (all p>0.05).
DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSION: In this cross-sectional comparison, patient-reported gastrointestinal symptoms and bowel function scores were similar across different postoperative periods following LSG. These findings suggest that patient-reported gastrointestinal symptom burden was similar across independent postoperative time groups. The PRO-diGI questionnaire may be considered a useful measurement instrument for evaluating patient-reported gastrointestinal function after bariatric surgery.

Keywords: Bowel Function, gastrointestinal symptoms, laparoscopic sleeve gastrectomy, obesity, PRO-diGI