title: Management of ulcerative colitis in the morbidly obese patient: is bariatric surgery indicated?
abstract: Ulcerative colitis and obesity share a systemic chronic inflammatory response manifested by increased inflammatory markers. There are data suggesting a benefit in both diseases after inflammatory markers are decreased. We present a 39-year-old morbidly obese male with a history of ulcerative colitis who manifested significant symptomatic improvement after an 86.8% excess weight loss following gastric bypass surgery. We believe that this result may have been due to a reduction of inflammatory markers secondary to considerable weight loss. Although to our knowledge there are no publications showing a direct relationship between symptomatic improvement of ulcerative colitis and weight loss in the obese patient, we believe that weight loss surgery could become a promising tool in the treatment of ulcerative colitis when associated with morbid obesity.
authors.affiliation: Bariatric Institute, Cleveland Clinic Florida, Weston, FL 33331, USA.
authors.forename: Charles A
authors.initials: CA
authors.lastname: Lascano
authors.forename: Flavia
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Soto
authors.forename: Lester
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Carrodeguas
authors.forename: Samuel
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Szomstein
authors.forename: Raul J
authors.initials: RJ
authors.lastname: Rosenthal
authors.forename: Steven D
authors.initials: SD
authors.lastname: Wexner
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000465:Algorithms; D003093:Colitis, Ulcerative / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000601:surgery; D015897:Comorbidity; D005260:Female; D015390:Gastric Bypass; D006801:Humans; D009767:Obesity, Morbid / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000601:surgery; D015431:Weight Loss / Q000502:physiology