Impact of Laparoscopic Gastric Bypass Surgery and Weight Reduction on Lower Esophageal Sphincter (LES)

The prevalence of obesity has increased dramatically in recent decades. The gastrointestinal changes associated with obesity have clinical significance for the anesthesiologist in the perioperative period. The upper and lower esophageal sphincters (UES and LES) play a central role in preventing regurgitation and aspiration. The barrier pressure, defined as the difference between the LES pressure and the Intragastric pressure is known to be lower in obese patients compared to lean patients. This might result in a higher risk of regurgitation and aspiration of stomach contents in during induction of anesthesia. Some studies are made on patients before and after bariatric surgery but results are sparse. In this study the investigators will examine 30 patients before and after bariatric surgery. Our group have performed the measurements on patients before surgery and presented the results in another article. Those patients will be asked to take part of another measurement now 12-18 months after surgery. 30 patients will be consecutively asked and enrolled in this study. Measurements will be performed using high-resolution-solid state manometry.