Risk of cholecystectomy in morbidly obese patients after bariatric surgery in Taiwan

Purpose: The anatomic rearrangement of the gastrointestinal tract after bariatric surgery may result in alterations in the bile acid pool and consequently, gallstone disease. We aimed to investigate whether patients undergoing bariatric surgery are at risk of developing gallbladder disease postoperatively. Patients and methods: We conducted a population-based cohort study by using claims data from the Taiwan National Health Insurance Research Database. The study cohort comprised 4197 patients diagnosed with morbid obesity. Results: Among the morbidly obese patients, 2698 underwent bariatric surgery. Females and younger subjects were more prevalent in the surgical group than non-surgical group. Bariatric surgery reduced all obesity-related comorbidities. Cox proportional hazards regression was performed, which revealed increased risk of cholecystectomy after bariatric surgery among obese patients (adjusted hazard ratio, 3.43; p = 0.0165). After adjusting for sex and age, the incidence of cholecystectomy was increased in the females population (adjusted hazard ratio, 3.74; p < 0.05) and in 30–64 years-old-group (adjusted hazard ratio: 3.69, p < 0.05). The cumulative incidence rate of cholecystectomy showed an increased tendency in those undergoing bariatric surgery by log-rank test. Conclusion: Based on the Taiwan database population-based cohort study, bariatric surgery increases the risk of cholecystectomy among morbidly obese patients, especially in the female population and patients aged 30–64 years.