Back to 2025 Abstracts
Incisional Negative Pressure Wound Therapy Following Abdominal Body Contouring Surgery in Post-Bariatric Surgery Patients: Does it Make a Difference, or Just Suck?
Wayne Bauerle
1, Vanessa Reese
*1, Joseph Evans
1, Ryan Lee
2, Nestor Worobetz
1, Christopher Sanders
11St. Luke's University Health Network, Bethlehem, PA; 2Temple/St. Luke’s Lewis Katz School of Medicine, Bethlehem, PA
Background: Following massive weight loss upwards of 85% of bariatric surgery patients desire abdominal body contouring (ABC) surgery. Post-bariatric body contouring patients have unique challenges, and may have increased risk of surgical complications, particularly wound healing. Incisional negative pressure wound therapy (iNPWT) provides a potential conduit to reduce minor and major wound complications following ABC. The primary aim of this study was to investigate the effects of iNPWT on surgical site complication rates following ABC.
Methods: A retrospective case-control study at a single academic medical center was performed. Inclusion criteria consisted of nonsmokers and former smokers who achieved massive weight loss, defined as ≥100 lbs or ≥ 50% excess body weight, and had an abdominal body contouring surgery performed between January 2021 and May 2024. A comparison iNPWT was performed using several statistical methods, including an unpaired t-test, analysis of variance (ANOVA), the Mann-Whitney test (a non-parametric test), the Kruskal-Wallis test (also non-parametric), the Chi-square test, and Fisher's exact test. Statistical significance was set to p ≤ 0.05.
Results: The rate of wound dehiscence (22.97% vs. 2.27%, p 0.003) and infection (21.62% vs. 6.82%, p 0.040) for the standard and iNPWT cohorts was significantly lower in the iNPWT cohort (Table 1). Hematoma, seroma, and overall complications following abdominal body contouring surgery did not significantly differ between the standard and iNPWT cohorts (8.11% vs 6.82%, 4.05% vs 6.82%, and 40.54% vs 36.36% respectively).
Conclusion: With an increasing number of patients undergoing bariatric surgery with a subsequent body contouring procedure, iNPWT dressings provide plastic surgeons a potential avenue to reduce the incidence of wound complications. Future investigation should consist of larger prospective, randomized control studies to further delineate the effects of iNPWT dressings on rates of various surgical site complications within this population.
Table 1
iNPWT
|
Factor
| No
| Yes
| p-value
|
| N | 74 | 44 | |
LOS (HRS), median (IQR)
| 10.0 (8.0, 20.6)
| 8.0 (7.0, 9.0)
| <0.001
|
BMI, mean (SD)
| 30.2 (4.7)
| 31.1 (4.6)
| 0.29 |
WEIGHT LOSS (KG), median (IQR)
| 43.2 (33.3, 55.8)
| 43.2 (31.0, 57.2)
| 0.84 |
% EXCESS WT LOSS, median (IQR)
| 73.5 (66.2, 87.7)
| 71.2 (62.0, 88.0)
| 0.35 |
BMI categories
0
1
2
3
Overweight
| -
20 (27.03%)
23 (31.08%)
8 (10.81%)
4 (5.41%)
19 (25.68%)
| -
9 (20.45%)
15 (34.09%)
6 (13.64%)
3 (6.82%)
11 (25.00%)
| 0.93 |
Post Bariatric Surgery
Gastric Bypass
Sleeve Gastrectomy
| -
48 (76.19%)
15 (23.81%)
| -
24 (64.86%)
13 (35.14%)
| 0.22 |
MULTIPLE PROCEDURES
No
Yes
| -
51 (68.92%)
23 (31.08%)
| -
34 (77.27%)
10 (22.73%)
| 0.40 |
Patient class
Outpatient
Admitted
Overnight
| -
56 (75.68%)
5 (6.76%)
13 (17.57%)
| -
40 (90.91%)
1 (2.27%)
3 (6.82%)
| 0.12 |
CHRONIC STEROID
No
| 74 (100.00%)
| 44 (100.00%)
| |
OPEN CHOLECYSTECTOMY
No
Yes
| -
74 (100.00%)
0 (0.00%)
| -
42 (95.45%)
2 (4.55%)
| 0.14 |
WOUND DEHISCENCE
No
Yes
| -
57 (77.03%)
17 (22.97%)
| -
43 (97.73%)
1 (2.27%)
| 0.003 |
INFECTION AB IN 90
No
Yes
| -
58 (78.38%)
16 (21.62%)
| -
41 (93.18%)
3 (6.82%)
| 0.04 |
HEMATOMA
No
Yes
| -
68 (91.89%)
6 (8.11%)
| -
41 (93.18%)
3 (6.82%)
| 1 |
SEROMA
No
Yes
| -
71 (95.95%)
3 (4.05%)
| -
41 (93.18%)
3 (6.82%)
| 0.67 |
Other complication
No
Yes
| -
65 (87.84%)
9 (12.16%)
| -
36 (81.82%)
8 (18.18%)
| 0.42 |
REOP
No
Yes
| -
64 (86.49%)
10 (13.51%)
| -
38 (86.36%)
6 (13.64%)
| 1 |
Complication
No
Yes
| -
44 (59.46%)
30 (40.54%)
| -
28 (63.64%)
16 (36.36%)
| 0.7 |
Back to 2025 Abstracts
