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Preoperative 4-Week Supplementation with Omega-3 Polyunsaturated Fatty Acids Reduces Liver Volume and Facilitates Bariatric Surgery in Morbidly Obese Patients

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Abstract

Background

Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is a very common condition among obese patients that may lead to the enlargement of the liver, that in turn impairs the access to the gastro-esophageal junction during laparoscopic bariatric surgery. Omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (Ω-3 PUFAs) supplementation has been shown to reduce nutritional hepatic steatosis. The aim of this study was to assess the effects of a 4-week course of oral Ω-3 PUFAs supplementation on the volume of the liver.

Methods

20 morbidly obese patients were administered oral Ω-3 PUFAs (1,500 mg daily) for 4 weeks before undergoing the laparoscopic Roux-en-Y gastric bypass (LRYGBP) without any dietary restriction. The volume of the left hepatic lobe was estimated by liver ultrasonography at baseline and at the end of treatment. The degree of difficulty to access the gastro-esophageal junction was appreciated subjectively by the operating surgeon.

Results

All patients completed the study and no side effect was reported. The mean volume of the left hepatic lobe decreased by 20 % from 598 ± 97 to 484 ± 118 cm3 after the treatment (p = 0.002). The access to the gastro-esophageal junction was reported as simple, with easy retraction of the left hepatic lobe by the operating surgeon in all cases.

Conclusions

This study demonstrates that a 4-week course of oral Ω-3 PUFAs supplementation results in a significant reduction in liver size that facilitates the LRYGBP.

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Conflict of interest

All the authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Service de Chirurgie Digestive et Transplantation Hépatique, Centre Hospitalier Universitaire de Nice, Hôpital de l’Archet, Pôle Digestif, 151 Route Saint-Antoine de Ginestière, BP 3079, Nice, 06202, Cedex 3, France

    Antonio Iannelli, Francesco Martini, Anne Sophie Schneck, Bijan Ghavami, Rodolphe Anty & Jean Gugenheim

  2. Faculté de Médecine, Université de Nice-Sophia Antipolis, Nice, 06107, France

    Antonio Iannelli, Francesco Martini, Anne Sophie Schneck, Guillaume Baudin, Rodolphe Anty & Jean Gugenheim

  3. Service de Radiologie, Centre Hospitalier Universitaire de Nice, Hôpital de l’Archet, Pôle Digestif, 151 Route Saint-Antoine de Ginestière, BP 3079, Nice, 06202, France

    Guillaume Baudin

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  1. Antonio Iannelli
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  2. Francesco Martini
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Antonio Iannelli.

Additional information

A. Iannelli and F. Martini contributed equally to this study.

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Iannelli, A., Martini, F., Schneck, A.S. et al. Preoperative 4-Week Supplementation with Omega-3 Polyunsaturated Fatty Acids Reduces Liver Volume and Facilitates Bariatric Surgery in Morbidly Obese Patients. OBES SURG 23, 1761–1765 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11695-013-0942-y

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11695-013-0942-y

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