Researchers from Washington University School of Medicine in St Louis have suggested that weight loss after bariatric surgery, rather than the surgery itself, drives metabolic improvements such as the remission of diabetes. Their findings were published in the paper, ‘Effect of diet versus gastric bypass on metabolic function in diabetes’, in The New England Journal of Medicine.

The prevalence of morbid obesity in a population is associated with negative outcomes from COVID-19, according to an analysis by researchers at The University of Alabama (UA) of morbid obesity data and reported COVID-19 deaths in the United States.

Stomach capacity in people with obesity changes to accommodate different eating situations, which has an effect on feelings of fullness and the urge to overeat, according to a study published in the American Journal of Physiology-Gastrointestinal and Liver Physiology.

There is sufficient evidence to demonstrate that One Anastomosis Gastric Bypass/Mini Gastric Bypass (OAGB-MGB) can be considered a safe and effective option as a revisional bariatric surgery procedures, according to an international team of researchers who carried out a systematic review of more than 1,000 patients.

A study of more than 26,000 patients has reported that bariatric surgery is associated with a lower risk for dying over the long-term, especially for heavier patients and those who have bariatric surgery at older ages. The outcomes were featured in the paper, ‘Association Between Bariatric Surgery and All-Cause Mortality: A Population-Based Matched Cohort Study in a Universal Health Care System’, published in the Annals of Internal Medicine.

Roux-en-Y gastric bypass (RYGB) is an effective strategy for midterm blood pressure (BP) control and hypertension remission with fewer medications required in patients with hypertension and obesity, according to the three-year results from the GAstric Bypass to Treat obEse Patients With steAdy hYpertension (GATEWAY) randomised clinical trial. The outcomes were published in the paper, ‘Three-Year Outcomes of Bariatric Surgery in Patients With Obesity and Hypertension Randomized Clinical Trial’, in the Annals of Internal Medicine.

There is a striking association between BMI and risk for death among patients with a diagnosis of COVID-19, reports a retrospective cohort study, ‘Obesity and Mortality Among Patients Diagnosed With COVID-19: Results From an Integrated Health Care Organization’, published in the Annals of Internal Medicine. The association was independent of obesity-related comorbities and other potential confounders.

Vegetarian bariatric patients in East and South-East Asia are an under-recognized patient cohort at risk of micronutrient deficiencies, according to a survey of Asian surgeons by Asia-Pacific Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery Society (APMBSS). The study authors noted that current literature on micronutrient deficiency in this cohort is scarce, particularly in East and South-East Asian, and that there is a knowledge gap among regional surgeons in long-term nutritional assessment and management.

People who are overweight, even if only modestly, are at greater risk of COVID-19 hospitalization, according to researchers from University College London, UK. For the study, ‘Overweight, obesity, and risk of hospitalization for COVID-19: A community-based cohort study of adults in the United Kingdom’, published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, researchers assessed UK Biobank data of more than 330,000 UK residents, taken between 2006 and 2010.

Changes in weight between young adulthood and midlife may have important consequences for a person's risk of early death, according to a Boston University School of Public Health (BUSPH) study.

Standard Bariatric’s Titan SGS stapling technology, which according to the company features the longest continuous stapler cutline (23cm), has been successful in an ongoing clinical trial at Buffalo General Medical Center, where the world’s first eight sleeve gastrectomy patients have been enrolled in the Investigational Device Exemption (IDE) study.

Researchers at the Lund University Diabetes Centre (LUDC) and the Centre for Analysis and Synthesis (CAS) have for the first time studied the effects of the strict low-calorie diet and the operation separately, and the results show that the diet alone accounted for the greatest positive effect. The findings are described in the paper, ‘Metabolic Effects of Gastric Bypass Surgery - is it all about Calories?’, published in the journal Diabetes

Obalon Therapeutics has executed a consulting agreement with Blue Ox Healthcare Partners, a private equity firm focused on commercial-ready companies bringing technology enabled innovation to healthcare, especially those involved in precision health, healthcare delivery and affordability.

The Echelon Powered Stapler with Gripping Surface Technology (GST) reloads (Ethicon) was associated with a lower rate of bleeding-related complications compared to the Signia Stapling System with Tri-Staple (Medtronic) among patients undergoing laparoscopic sleeve gastrectomy, according to the first real-world evidence study comparing these two powered surgical stapling systems.

Researchers from Michigan Medicine team has providing new insights into why patients with severe hyperglycaemia may trigger worse outcomes in people infected with COVID-19. The researchers have developed a blood sugar management tool that may potentially reduce risk of secondary infections, kidney issues and intensive care stays in people with diabetes, prediabetes or obesity who get COVID-19. The reported their findings in the paper, ‘Managing Hyperglycemia in the COVID-19 Inflammatory Storm’, published in Diabetes.

A compound given as a dietary supplement to overweight but otherwise healthy people in a clinical trial caused many of the patients to lose weight, according to research by Oregon State University and Oregon Health & Science University. The research, ‘A Randomized Controlled Trial of Long-Term (R)-α-Lipoic Acid Supplementation Promotes Weight Loss in Overweight or Obese Adults without Altering Baseline Elevated Plasma Triglyceride Concentrations’, was published in The Journal of Nutrition.

Obesity increases the release of tumour-promoting molecules from fat tissue and is associated with an increased risk of breast cancer, according to a study, ‘Obese adipose tissue extracellular vesicles raise breast cancer cell malignancy’, published in Endocrine-Related Cancer.

A study from Harvard Medical School (UMS) and Brigham and Women's Hospital reveals the latest piece of the puzzle of how bariatric surgery can lead to healthier blood sugar levels. The paper, ‘Bariatric surgery reveals a gut-restricted TGR5 agonist with anti-diabetic effects’, published in Nature Chemical Biology, reports that that a specific bile acid rises in the guts of mice and humans after bariatric surgery and sets off a chain of biochemical events that lowers high blood sugar.

Nestlé Health Science and Epitomee Medical have entered into a strategic partnership for the development and commercialisation of an innovative polymer-based ingestible product aimed at promoting weight loss and improving health. The strategic partnership will cover the development and the commercialisation of the product which has already demonstrated efficacy and safety in various pre-clinical and clinical studies with significant weight loss reduction and other beneficial health impacts.