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Wernicke Encephalopathy: a Future Problem Even After Sleeve Gastrectomy? A Systematic Literature Review

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Abstract

Wernicke encephalopathy (WE) is a serious complication of bariatric surgery with significant morbidity and mortality. A few cases have been reported in the literature, mainly in patients after a Roux-en-Y gastric bypass. Since sleeve gastrectomy (SG) has become a more established and popular bariatric procedure, WE is expected to appear more frequently after SG. We performed a literature review on WE after SG, and 13 cases have been found to be sufficiently documented. The risk of WE needs to be considered in patients with a prolonged vomiting episode and any type of neurological symptoms, independent of the presence of any surgical complications.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Visceral Surgery and Medicine, Bern University Hospital and University of Bern, 3010, Bern, Switzerland

    Dino Kröll, Markus Laimer, Yves Michael Borbély, Kurt Laederach, Daniel Candinas & Philipp Christoph Nett

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  1. Dino Kröll
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  2. Markus Laimer
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Correspondence to Dino Kröll.

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Informed consent was obtained from all of the individual participants included in the study.

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All of the procedures performed in the study involving human participants were in accordance with the ethical standards of the institutional research committee and the 1964 Helsinki.

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Kröll, D., Laimer, M., Borbély, Y.M. et al. Wernicke Encephalopathy: a Future Problem Even After Sleeve Gastrectomy? A Systematic Literature Review. OBES SURG 26, 205–212 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11695-015-1927-9

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11695-015-1927-9

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