Can low-BMI Chinese patients with type 2 diabetes benefit from laparoscopic Roux-en-Y gastric bypass surgery?

Background: The efficacy of laparoscopic Roux-en-Y gastric bypass (LRYGB) in type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2D) is closely associated with the preoperative body mass index (BMI) of the patient. There is a lack of long-term and large sampling evidence on the efficacy of LRYGB in T2D patients with low BMI in China. Objectives: This retrospective study aimed to evaluate the efficacy of surgical treatment in a Chinese population with T2D (especially patients with BMI <27.5 kg/m(2)). Setting: University-affiliated hospital, China Methods: Seventy-eight patients with T2D were included in the study and evaluated before and after LRYGB surgery. No patients were lost to follow-up at any time points. Results: Thirty-eight T2D patients with BMI >= 27.5 kg/m(2) in group 1 (high BMI group) had significant improvements in waist circumference, blood glucose levels, homeostasis model assessment-insulin resistance index, and C-peptide levels after LRYGB (P < .05). Forty T2D patients with BMI <27.5 kg/m(2) in group 2 (low BMI group, including 19 T2D patients with BMI <25 kg/m(2)) had significant improvements in waist circumference and waist-to-hip ratio after LRYGB (P < .05). Conclusions: LRYGB surgery may be beneficial in T2D patients with BMI <27.5 kg/m(2) in China. (C) 2016 American Society for Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery. All rights reserved.