Effects of vertical-banded gastroplasty on bone and mineral metabolism in obese patients

The surgical treatment of obesity can have adverse effects on bone, but there are few published data on the effects of vertical‐banded gastroplasty. Serial measurements of bone mineral density at the lumbar spine and three upper femoral sites, using dual‐energy X‐ray absorptiometry, and also of biochemical indices of bone and mineral metabolism at intervals up to 2 years after operation were performed in 18 patients with morbid obesity who had vertical‐banded gastroplasty. Bone mineral density measurements were also made in age‐ and sex‐matched non‐obese controls. Bone density before operation was significantly greater in the obese than in the controls (P