title: Laparoscopic gastric band migration: role of environmental factors in the experience of a single team in three operating rooms.
abstract: Stomach erosion after gastric banding represents one of its least studied complications, despite the fact that the modalities of presentation and treatment have been clarified in recent years. Associations between this complication and specific surgical factors related to the patient have not been reported. We evaluated the incidence of this complication in various operating environments, to identify a possible association with a specific risk factor. A total of 250 patients underwent gastric banding between 2006 and 2008 and were followed for at least 1 year of follow-up. The procedure was performed in three Centers by the same surgical team. Center A was selected for the learning curve, in the initial phase of the study. All surgeries were performed with standardized techniques. An annual endoscopic evaluation was performed during first 12 months. The data from the three Centers were evaluated comparatively, to assess the incidence of migration and compare sterilization and perioperative preparation techniques. Between May 2006 and December 2008, 140 patients operated on at Center A, 70 at Center B, and 50 at Center C were included. Twelve cases of intragastric migration were observed (4.8% of the entire cohort): two cases at Center A (1.4%) and 10 cases at Center C (25%; A vs. C and A vs. B, p < 0.05); no cases of erosions were observed in Center B of 50 patients (0%; reviewer 1, comment 1). From a retrospective observation, no significant difference in sterilization techniques was observed, while there were differences in perioperative preparation, although these are not objectifiable parameters.
authors.affiliation: Department of General, Geriatric, Oncologic Surgery and Advanced Technologies, University Federico II of Naples, Via Pansini, 5, 80131, Naples, Italy. salvytra@libero.it
authors.forename: Pietro
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Forestieri
authors.forename: Vincenzo
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Pilone
authors.forename: Salvatore
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Tramontano
authors.forename: Antonio
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Formato
authors.forename: Angela
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Monda
authors.forename: Emanuela
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Esposito
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D004203:Disinfection / Q000379:methods; D005260:Female; D005548:Foreign-Body Migration / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000209:etiology*; D015391:Gastroplasty / Q000009:adverse effects* / Q000379:methods; D006801:Humans; D010535:Laparoscopy; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D012307:Risk Factors; D055815:Young Adult