Mayo Clinic researchers are reporting that persons who undergo bariatric surgery may have a greater chance of experiencing broken bones, especially in their hands and feet. The study is based on a review of nearly 100 surgical cases at Mayo spanning 21 years and is being presented today at the Endocrinology Society Annual Meeting in Washington, D.C.
The research team worked with Rochester Epidemiology Project records to develop the chart review of 97 of the 292 patients who underwent the bariatric procedure between 1984 and 2004. The findings, adjusted for age and gender factors, showed 21 individuals experienced 31 fractures within an average of seven years after surgery. Fractures were reported in the hip, spine and humerus (upper arm bone), with the majority of fractures in the hands and feet.
“We’ve shown that risk of fractures after this type of weight loss surgery is clinically significant,” says Elizabeth Haglind, M.D., Mayo endocrinologist and lead author, who is presenting today. “More research is needed to confirm our findings and understand the specific risk factors and mechanisms involved.”
Below is a link to an edited youtube video with Dr. Haglind.
5 Comments
i am a gastric bypass patient who has had the surgery ! I had my surgry August 20,2007 and i have lost 107 pounds in a year in half. And dropped from a 24-to and 8 and feel very good.
Ok, so how many of those patients were compliant with taking calcium and Vitamin D daily. How many were followed by their primary care physician to make sure they were absorbing enough of those nutrients?? Just saying that folks had fractures within 7 years of having gastric bypass surgery doesn’t tell me anything other than they had fractures. Was there an underlying problem which could have been avoided with proper supplementation and follow up??
Hello Susan,
You have raised very important questions and our ongoing study is addressing them.
All our patients had aggressive replacement with Calcium and Vitamin D. Were they absorbing them? What are the other factors that make this population fracture more as compared to the general population? These are important questions – answers should be available within the next few months. Thank you for your interest.
I am a gastric bypass patient dealing with this very important bone loss and bone fracture problem. I am currently taking mega-doses of Vitamin-D and calcium and have yet to get my bone loss under control. If anybody has any more info on this matter please respond. Thank you.
I had surgery December 19, 2006 and have done very well. I was interested in the article regarding bone loss. I fell going up the steps October 16, 2008 and broke my foot and messed up my ankle. My foot didn’t heal. I have been very faithful in going to all of my follow-up doctor appointments. I also faithfully take calcium and Vit C daily. All of my levels at my check-ups have been normal.
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[...] Clowes and Haglind let the findings be known in Washington today at the Endocrine Society. [See more on the Mayo News Blog.] This may also be another important aspect for surgical candidates in their decision-making [...]