Is Routine Preoperative Esophagogastroduodenoscopy Screening Necessary Prior to Laparoscopic Sleeve Gastrectomy? Review of 1555 Cases and Comparison with Current Literature.

BACKGROUND: Controversy exists as to whether routine preoperative esophagogastroduodenoscopy (p-OGD) in bariatric surgery should be routinely undertaken or undertaken selectively based on patients' symptoms. As very few studies have focused on the role of p-OGD prior to the increasingly common laparoscopic sleeve gastrectomy (LSG), we assessed the role/impact of p-OGD in LSG patients.

METHODS: Retrospective review of records of all LSG patients operated upon at Hamad General Hospital, Qatar (2011-2014, n = 1555). All patients were screened by p-OGD. Patient characteristics were analyzed, and p-OGD findings were categorized into four groups employing Sharaf et al.'s classification (Obes Surg 14:1367-1372, 23). We assessed the impact of p-OGD findings on any change in surgical management or lack thereof.

RESULTS: p-OGD findings indicated that 89.5% of our patients had normal or mild findings and were asymptomatic (groups 0 and 1, not necessitating any change in surgical management), and no patients had gastric cancer or varices (group 3). A total of 10.5% of our sample were categorized as group 2 patients who, according to Sharaf et al. (Obes Surg 14:1367-1372, 23), might have their surgical approach changed. All patients diagnosed preoperatively with hiatal hernia (HH) had LSG with crural repair and their symptoms resolved postoperatively.

CONCLUSION: Due to effectiveness and best utilization of resources, routine p-OGD screening in patients scheduled for LSG may require further justification for asymptomatic patients especially in regions with low upper GI cancers. p-OGD findings had low impact on the management of asymptomatic patients. Crural repair plus LSG was effective for hiatal hernia.