Comparison of Marginal Ulcer Rates Between Antecolic and Retrocolic Laparoscopic Roux-en-Y Gastric Bypass

Marginal ulcer can be a serious complication after laparoscopic gastric bypass surgery. The aim of this study was to compare the rates of marginal ulcer between the antecolic and the retrocolic technique, in a large cohort of patients. Over a near 10-year period, 1,142 patients underwent laparoscopic gastric bypass surgery. The antecolic and the retrocolic technique were used in respectively 572 and 570 consecutive patients. All procedures were performed using a circular stapled gastrojejunostomy. Patients were followed for 18 to 99 months (mean 48.8 months). During follow-up, 46 patients developed a marginal ulcer (4 %), 32 in the antecolic group (5.6 %) and 14 in the retrocolic group (2.5 %). Nineteen patients (3.3 %) in the antecolic group and eight patients in the retrocolic group (1.4 %) developed early marginal ulcer (i.e., within 3 months after surgery). The mean time to onset of anastomotic ulcer symptoms after surgery was 11 months (range 0.25-72). Forty-four patients were submitted to medical treatment, and 35 patients (79.5 %) had complete resolution of their symptoms. Patients with an antecolic Roux limb develop significantly more marginal ulcers (p = 0.007) and early marginal ulcer (p = 0.033) than the patients with a retrocolic Roux limb. The antecolic technique seems to be a risk factor for appearance of marginal ulcer.