Endoscopic Sleeve Gastroplasty: A Safe Bariatric Intervention for Class III Obesity (BMI > 40)

Purpose Endoscopic sleeve gastroplasty (ESG) is primarily offered to patients with class I and II obesity (BMI 30–40), although there are no guidelines specifying applicability. There is little data comparing ESG to bariatric surgery in patients with class III obesity (BMI > 40). This study evaluates the short-term safety of ESG compared to sleeve gastrectomy (SG) and gastric bypass (RYGB) in patients with class III obesity. Methods We retrospectively analyzed over 500,000 patients who underwent ESG, SG, and RNYGB from 2016 to 2020 in the Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery Accreditation and Quality Improvement Program database. ESG patients were stratified by BMI to compare outcomes between class I and II versus class III obese patients. Class III obese patients who underwent ESG were also propensity matched to SG and RNYGB patients for matched comparisons. Primary outcomes included adverse events (AE), readmissions, re-operations, and re-interventions within 30 days. Secondary outcomes included procedure time, length of stay (LOS), and total body weight loss (%TBWL) at 30 days. Results Among ESG patients, those with BMI > 40 had no difference in AE, readmissions, or re-interventions versus patients with BMI 30–40 ( p > 0.05), while achieving greater %TBWL at 30 days ( p < 0.05). In comparison to surgery, ESG had similar AE to SG and less than RNYGB, while producing comparable %TBWL to SG and RNYGB at 30 days. Conclusions The feasibility and safety of ESG in patients with class III obesity are comparable to patients with class I and II obesity. Additionally, the safety of ESG in patients with class III obesity is comparable to SG and safer than RYGB. Graphical Abstract Endoscopic sleeve gastroplasty: a safe bariatric intervention for class III obesity (BMI > 40)