Trends in Bariatric Surgical Procedures

CONTEXT The increasing prevalence and associated sociodemographic disparities of morbid obesity are serious public health concerns. Bariatric surgical procedures provide greater and more durable weight reduction than behavioral and pharmacological interventions for morbid obesity. OBJECTIVE To examine trends for elective bariatric surgical procedures, patient characteristics, and in-hospital complications from 1998 to 2003 in the United States. DESIGN, SETTING, AND PATIENTS The Nationwide Inpatient Sample was used to identify bariatric surgery admissions from 1998-2002 (with preliminary data for 12 states from 2003) using International Classification of Diseases, Ninth Revision, codes for foregut surgery with a confirmatory diagnosis of obesity or by diagnosis related group code for obesity surgery. Annual estimates and trends were determined for procedures, patient characteristics, and adjusted complication rates. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES Trends in bariatric surgical procedures, patient characteristics, and complications. RESULTS The estimated number of bariatric surgical procedures increased from 13 365 in 1998 to 72 177 in 2002 (P