The type of weight loss surgery before pregnancy may affect the baby's early weight
Last reviewed: 14.06.2024
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The type of weight-loss surgery women undergo before pregnancy may influence their children's weight gain in the first three years of life, suggests research presented Monday at ENDO 2024, the annual meeting of the Endocrine Society in Boston, Massachusetts. p>
Researchers found that babies born to women who had bariatric surgery called a sleeve gastrectomy before pregnancy gained, on average, more weight per month in the first three years of life compared to babies born to women who had the less common procedure for weight loss Roux-en-Y gastric bypass.
"Either the extent of pre-pregnancy weight loss or the metabolic changes from Roux-en-Y gastric bypass may be beneficial for children's weight gain in early childhood," said Dr. Vidhu Thacker, a researcher at Columbia University Irving Medical Center in New York City. York.
Maternal obesity is a risk factor for childhood obesity. Women are more likely to become pregnant after weight loss procedures, but less is known about the early growth of children born after such procedures.
Sleeve gastrectomy and Roux-en-Y gastric bypass are two of the more common types of weight loss surgery, also known as bariatric and metabolic surgery. These surgeries lead to sustainable weight loss and improve the body's metabolism in most patients.
In a vertical sleeve gastrectomy (also called a sleeve gastrectomy), the surgeon removes most of the stomach, leaving only a banana-shaped area that is closed with staples. By removing the part of the stomach that produces hormones that stimulate hunger, this procedure also reduces appetite.
In gastric bypass surgery, the surgeon divides the stomach into two parts, isolating the upper part from the lower. The surgeon then connects the upper stomach directly to the lower small intestine. This creates a shortcut for food, bypassing part of the stomach and small intestine. Skipping these parts of the digestive tract means the body absorbs fewer calories and nutrients.
Researchers studied the weight and height of offspring born after pre-pregnancy weight-loss procedures in the first three years of life. The study used data on 20,515 births over three years, of which 450 involved pre-pregnancy weight loss procedures. Among mothers who underwent weight loss surgery, 57% had a sleeve gastrectomy and 41% had Roux-en-Y gastric bypass. Long-term data on weight and height were available for approximately half of the children in each group.
Researchers found that there was no difference in birth weight among children born after weight-loss surgery. The rate of weight gain was higher in those born after pre-pregnancy sleeve gastrectomy compared with those born after Roux-en-Y gastric bypass, after controlling for several other variables, including pre-pregnancy body mass index.
"Although we did not have data on the magnitude of weight loss after bariatric surgery, Roux-en-Y gastric bypass is known to produce greater weight loss and metabolic changes compared with sleeve gastrectomy," Tucker noted.
The authors concluded that either the extent of prepregnancy weight loss or the metabolic changes from Roux-en-Y gastric bypass may be beneficial for children's early childhood weight gain trajectories.
“The study of the mechanisms underlying the link between sustained prepregnancy weight loss and childhood growth in the early years may also be applied to other weight loss treatments, including recently approved anti-obesity drugs,” Tucker said.