Imaging After Bariatric Surgery: When Interpretation Is a Challenge, from Normal to Abnormal

Bariatric surgery has proven to be the most effective weight loss strategy in severe obesity. Imaging in the immediate postoperative period of bariatric surgery is not done routinely. However, it is helpful in the assessment of early and late complications, which are estimated to be present in < 1% of patients. In some cases, the imaging interpretation of anatomical outcomes and complications related to these procedures represents a challenge for surgeons and radiologists. The aim of this review is to describe the imagenologic findings after bariatric surgery and focuses on the findings of the most frequent procedures performed in Colombia such as laparoscopic sleeve gastrectomy, laparoscopic Roux-en-Y gastric bypass, and laparoscopic adjustable gastric banding. Contrasted CT scan and fluoroscopic studies have shown a high sensitivity in the early and late diagnosis of bariatric surgery complications, but in order to be able to appropriately identify these complications, it is important to be familiar with the normal or expected radiological findings.