Abstract
Objectives
This study reports the development and pilot application of the Bariatric Surgery Assessment and Prioritisation Tool (BAPT) for use in a public health system. The BAPT was designed as a patient prioritisation instrument to assess patients with excessive weight and type 2 diabetes suitable for bariatric surgery. We assessed whether the instrument successfully identified those who gained including weight loss, diabetes remission, reduction in comorbidities, and health-related quality of life HR-QoL).
Methods
The BAPT instrument was applied to score 292 patients referred for bariatric surgery in Queensland between 2017 and 2020 based on their, body mass index, diabetes status, surgical risk (e.g. pulmonary embolism) and comorbidities (e.g. non-alcoholic steatohepatitis). These data were collected at referral and at 12-months post-surgery for 130 patients and stratified by BAPT scores. Outcomes included those listed.
Results
Patients’ BAPT scores ranged from 12 to 78 (possible range 2–98). Those with higher scores tended to be younger (p<0.001), have higher BMI (p<0.001) or require insulin to manage diabetes (p<0.01).
All patients lost similar percentages of body weight (20-25%, p=0.73) but higher scoring patients were more likely to discontinue oral diabetes medications (p<0.001) and the improvement in glycated haemoglobin was four times greater in patients scoring 70–79 points compared to those scoring 20–29 (p<0.05). Those who scored ³50 on the BAPT were substantially more likely to obtain diabetes remission (57% vs 31%) and greater improvement in HR-QoL (21% vs 7%) than those with a BAPT £20.
Conclusions
The BAPT prioritised younger patients with higher BMIs who realised greater improvements in their diabetes after bariatric surgery. Higher scoring BAPT patients should be prioritised for bariatric surgery as they have greatest gains in health outcomes.