The Impacts of Obesity on a Laparoscopic Low Anterior Resection

Woo, Jin Hee; Park, Ki Jae; Choi, Hong Jo

Abstract

PURPOSE
Obese patients are generally believed to be at increased risk for surgery compared to those who are not obese. It was the purpose of this study to compare the short-term outcomes of a laparoscopic low anterior resection (LAR) in obese and non-obese patients.
METHODS
We retrospectively reviewed 79 patients who had undergone a laparoscopic LAR for rectal cancer between September 2002 and January 2008. The degree of obesity was based on the Body Mass Index (BMI, kg/m2). We divided the 79 patients into two groups: the high BMI (BMI> or =25) and the low BMI (BMI <25) groups. The parameters analyzed included age, gender, American Society of Anesthesiologists classification score, operative time, estimated blood loss, conversion rate, postoperative complications, hospital stay, and oncologic characteristics. Statistics included the t-test and Fisher's exact test. Statistical significance was assessed at the 5% level (P<0.05 being statistically significant).
RESULTS
There were no significant differences between the low BMI (n=55) and the high BMI (n=24) groups in age and gender. The high BMI group had significantly more conversion to an open procedure (20.8% vs. 3.6%, P=0.0244). The high BMI group and the low BMI group had no differences in blood loss, complications, hospital stay, and oncologic characteristics, but the high BMI group had a longer operative time (244.2 min vs. 212.0 min, P=0.0035).
CONCLUSION
A laparoscopic LAR in obese patients had a higher conversion rate and a longer operative time, but there were no differences in postoperative complications and oncologic characteristics. A further study based on many experiences is needed to clarify the influence of the surgeon's experience on the operative time and the conversion rate, and long-term follow-up is necessary to evaluate the oncologic safety of a laparoscopic LAR in obese patients.