Vitamin D deficiency can be a problem after the surgery because many patients have low vitamin D levels beforehand, some of the surgeries are designed to create malabsorption, and patients eat less food and different kinds of food after surgery. In the worst cases, patients develop secondary hyperparathyroidism or bone loss, and there have been case reports of osteomalacia.
All the studies used DXA scans to assess bone density after bariatric surgery, but DXA assessment may be biased in the setting of marked weight loss because of changes in soft tissue surrounding the bones. “We need nonbiased methods of assessing bone mineral density” for future studies of bariatric surgery's effects, she said.
Dr. Schafer had no disclosures.
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