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Exercise Aids Bone Health After Bariatric Surgery

FRIDAY, Dec. 18, 2020 -- Participation in a structured exercise program may aid bone health in patients who undergo bariatric surgery, according to a study published online Dec. 9 in the Journal of Bone and Mineral Research.

Florêncio Diniz-Sousa, from the University of Porto in Portugal, and colleagues randomly assigned 84 patients who underwent gastric bypass or sleeve gastrectomy to either an 11-month supervised multicomponent exercise program or control group. Bone health was assessed before bariatric surgery and at one, six, and 12 months postoperatively.

The researchers found that at 12 months after surgery, the exercise group had a higher bone mineral density (BMD) at the lumbar spine versus the control group. Among secondary outcomes, one-third radius BMD improved in the exercise group, but total hip and femoral neck BMDbone did not improve. However, among participants with ≥50 percent exercise attendance, there was a benefit observed for femoral neck BMD. There were no significant exercise effects noted on bone biochemical markers or bone material strength index.

"These findings showed that a structured exercise program may be a valid treatment option to minimize weight loss surgery-induced bone loss, which may be particularly important since many patients undergo surgery in early adulthood or even at pediatric ages," Diniz-Sousa said in a statement.

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Posted: December 2020