Attitudes of bariatric surgeons concerning adolescent bariatric surgery (ABS).
BACKGROUND
As the number of adolescents with clinically severe obesity has grown, so too have the number of adolescents seeking bariatric surgery.


METHODS
The membership of the ASBS was contacted by e-mail with a 14-question survey to ascertain plans for development of adolescent bariatric surgery (ABS) programs. Results were tabulated and expressed as a percentage of total respondents.


RESULTS
Of the 92 respondents, most (84%) performed >50 adult bariatric procedures per year. Over half (53%) had performed ABS. Nearly half (45%) had performed <10 ABS cases within the last year, and 70% were planning ABS in the upcoming year. 42% reported that they have already or were in the process of developing an adolescent bariatric treatment program with pediatric specialists in their community. The vast majority (84%) of respondents was willing to participate in a multi-center collection of outcomes data, and 65% reported having dedicated personnel for clinical data collection.


CONCLUSIONS
There is increasing interest in developing ABS programs. Despite the perceived need for such services, information is lacking in the adolescent age group to guide decisions regarding optimal patient selection, choice of operation, and postoperative management. Rigorous evaluation of the outcomes of this intervention with detailed prospective data collection is needed to support decision-making regarding use of bariatric surgery for adolescents with morbid obesity.
Allen
Steven R
SR
Department of Pediatric Surgery, Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, OH, USA.
Lawson
Louise
L
Garcia
Victor
V
Inge
Thomas H
TH
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000367:Age Factors; D001291:Attitude of Health Personnel; D050110:Bariatric Surgery / Q000523:psychology*; D006801:Humans; D009767:Obesity, Morbid / Q000601:surgery*