A New and Simplified Technique for Laparoscopic Gastric Bypass in a Residency Training Program: Decreased Resource Utilization and Enhanced Training

BACKGROUND Laparoscopic gastric bypass (LGB) is an advanced complex procedure. Teaching programs must balance resident training and participation with resource utilization, patient safety, and outcomes. We prospectively studied a new simplified LGB technique (S-LGB) in a residency training program. DESIGN Prospective observational study. SETTING Academic bariatric program. PATIENTS All patients undergoing S-LGB during 17 months. INTERVENTIONS Clinical data collection and surgeon survey. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES Resource utilization, patient outcomes, and resident/staff satisfaction. RESULTS There were 140 S-LGB operations performed by 4 staff members, all with postgraduate year 2 through 5 residents. There were no major intraoperative complications and no anastomotic leaks or deaths. Mean operative time for cases with no concurrent procedures was 91 minutes, with no intraoperative transfusions and 1 conversion to an open procedure. Compared with our standard technique, operative times with simple S-LGB decreased by an average of 56% for all staff (range, 45%-60%; P