Does Bariatric Surgery Improve Renal Function?

Introduction: Obesity is a health problem that is reaching epidemic proportions. The risk of developing chronic kidney disease (CKD) is higher in obese patients. Decreasing weight could translate into an improvement in renal function. In addition, renal function can be improved by the resolution of hypertension and diabetes. The main objective of this study is to analyze renal function in obese patients undergoing sleeve gastrectomy (SG). Material and Methods: This study is a nonrandomized, controlled retrospective review of 223 patients who underwent a minimally invasive SG at the University of Illinois Hospital and Health System between January 2008 and December 2013. In patients with CKD, renal function parameters were measured preoperatively and at 6 months postoperatively. Renal function was evaluated by GFR that was estimated using the creatinine clearance (CrCl) according to the Cockcroft-Gault (CG) equation. Statistical analysis was performed using Student's t test for continuous paired data. Results: The mean operative time was 84.1 min. The mean % excess weight loss (%EWL) at 6 months was 42.6%. At 6 months postoperatively, CrCl increased by 5.03 mL/min (p = 0.01) in patients with CKD. The mean serum creatinine decreased from 1.75 to 1.45 mg/dL (p = 0.01). Conclusions: Renal function improves 6 months after SG in patients with CKD.