Bariatric surgery can reduce the risk of serious liver conditions in patients with advanced liver disease by as much as 88 percent, according to a Cleveland Clinic study published Nov. 11 in JAMA.
"The results were remarkable," Cleveland Clinic cardiologist Steven Nissen, MD, told NBC affiliate WJXT. "From the progression of liver disease to the progression of liver cancer, cirrhosis, liver transplantation or liver-related death, there was an 88 percent reduction in the patients that got bariatric surgery. That is an enormous reduction."
The retrospective study evaluated 1,158 patients with confirmed advanced fatty liver disease who had a biopsy between 2004 and 2016. Among them, 650 patients underwent bariatric surgery. The remaining 508 patients had no surgery and served as the control group.
The patients who had bariatric surgery also saw a 70 percent lower risk of developing serious cardiovascular disease, Dr. Nissen said.