Exercise Following Bariatric Surgery for Severe/Morbid Obesity (EFIBAR) (EFIBAR)

Supervised Exercise Following Bariatric Surgery in the Treatment of Severe/Morbid Obesity: a Randomized Controlled Trial

Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad, Spain, Complejo Hospitalario Torrecárdenas (CHT), Almería, Spain

Severe/morbid obesity is an international public health issue that importantly increases the risk of cardiovascular events and cardiovascular and all-cause mortality. Likewise, severe/morbid obesity increases the risk of illness, reduces quality of life, and raises health-care costs. Bariatric surgery is the election method for the treatment of severe/morbid obesity, resulting in significant weight loss and remission of comorbidities. However, a relatively large proportion of bariatric patients regain weight and continue to be at high risk for cardiovascular disease and premature mortality. A healthy lifestyle following bariatric surgery is essential for optimizing and maintaining weight loss. Observational studies suggest that physical activity following bariatric surgery might be associated with additional weight loss and more effective weigh loss maintenance over time. However, very little experimental evidence exists regarding the effects of supervised exercise on obesity-related outcomes in this specific population. The aim of the EFIBAR (Ejercicio FÍsico tras cirugía BARiátrica) randomized controlled trial is to determine the effects of a 16-week supervised concurrent (aerobic and strength) exercise intervention program, on weight loss (primary outcome), body composition, cardiometabolic risk, physical fitness and quality of life (secondary outcomes) in patients with severe/morbid obesity following bariatric surgery. According to the study aims the investigators pursue the following hypothesis: Supervised exercise will result in larger weight loss than control.

Eligible participants will be randomly assigned (1:1) sequentially, as they will be submitted to bariatric surgery, to one of the two following groups: CON - Usual care (following international guidelines) after bariatric surgery. EX - Usual care plus supervised exercise program.

Investigators, study coordinators, outcome assessors, and clinical staff will be blinded to the group allocation. Participants and providers of the exercise delivery will not be blinded to the group allocation.

Usual care PLUS concurrent (aerobic and strength) supervised exercise program of 16 weeks (3 sessions/week, 60 min/session, progressively increasing in volume and intensity). The program will be conducted by certified Exercise Science professionals.

Usual care routinely delivered after bariatric surgery, based on national (Spanish) and international recommendations, focused on nutritional status monitoring and diet/physical activity counseling.

Concurrent (aerobic and strength) supervised exercise program: the program comprises 3 sessions/week (60 min/session) of aerobic and strength exercises of progressive volume and intensity. The program will follow the Consensus on Exercise Reporting Template (CERT) guidelines.

Total cholesterol (mg/dl), HDL-cholesterol (mg/dl), LDL-cholesterol (mg/dl) and triglycerides (mg/dl)

Measured by the WOMAC (Western Ontario and McMaster Universities) Osteoarthritis Index. The PAIN scale within the WOMAC questionnaire contains 5 items, each one scoring from 0 (Nothing) to 4 (Very much), what makes a total score ranging from 0 (better) to 20 (worse).

Measured by the WOMAC (Western Ontario and McMaster Universities) Osteoarthritis Index. The FUNCTION scale within the WOMAC questionnaire contains 17 items, each one scoring from 0 (No trouble) to 4 (Very much difficult), what makes a total score ranging from 0 (better) to 68 (worse).

Measured by the WOMAC (Western Ontario and McMaster Universities) Osteoarthritis Index. The STIFFNESS scale within the WOMAC questionnaire contains 2 items, each one scoring from 0 (Nothing) to 4 (Very much), what makes a total score ranging from 0 (better) to 8 (worse).

Measured by the Depression, Anxiety and Stress Scale short form (DASS-21). The DASS-21 comprises three sub-scales assessing specific psychiatric symptoms (i.e., depression, anxiety, and stress). Each of these symptoms is assessed using seven items rated on a 4-point Likert-type scale (i.e., 0 = ''Did not apply to me at all''; 3 = ''Applied to me very much, or most of the time''). Summed score for each psychiatric symptom ranges from 0 to 21. Higher scores in each sub-scale indicate higher levels of depressive, anxiety or stress symptomatology. According to the specific nature of the three psychiatric symptoms assessed by the DASS-21, these are treated independently so that no total score is available.

The costs will consider those related to the surgery, the exercise program, prescription medication, sick leave, post-surgery complications and readmission rates, time and effort requiring each treatment, as well as possible dietary and informal care costs. Effectiveness will be considered as changes observed in the main clinical outcomes: weight loss and cardiometabolic risk (remission/relapse of hypertension, dyslipidemia and type 2 diabetes).

The costs will consider those related to the surgery, the exercise program, prescription medication, sick leave, post-surgery complications and readmission rates, time and effort requiring each treatment, as well as possible dietary and informal care costs. Utility will evaluate variation in quality of life experienced by participants, computed as changes in quality-adjusted life years (QALY) using SF-36 questionnaire.

The costs will consider those related to the surgery, the exercise program, prescription medication, sick leave, post-surgery complications and readmission rates, time and effort requiring each treatment, as well as possible dietary and informal care costs. Utility will evaluate variation in quality of life experienced by participants, computed as changes in quality-adjusted life years (QALY) using EQ-5D-3L questionnaire.

Inclusion Criteria: To comply with local bariatric surgery criteria: Patients with BMI ≥ 40 kg/m2 (or 35 kg/m2 with comorbidities). Acceptable surgical risk (defined by the approval of anesthetist). Obesity maintained for over 5 years. Failure of previous treatments. To sign informed consent for surgical treatment. Not to present contraindications for supervised physical exercise. To reside in the city of Almeria (Spain) or willingness/predisposition to attend the training sessions 3 times a week during 16 weeks Exclusion Criteria: Severe psychiatric or neurological disorders such as schizophrenia, epilepsia, Alzheimer, Parkinson, personality disorders, eating behaviour disorders, untreated depression or suicidal tendencies. Adrenal or thyroid pathology that might cause obesity. Uncontrolled addiction to alcohol or drugs.

All IPD will be shared once the study is finalised and the main results are published. IPD can be obtained by contacting the responsible party (artero@ual.es).

The PI must be contacted and a minimum number of co-authors from the research team must be included in any publication.

Villa-Gonzalez E, Barranco-Ruiz Y, Rodriguez-Perez MA, Carretero-Ruiz A, Garcia-Martinez JM, Hernandez-Martinez A, Torrente-Sanchez MJ, Ferrer-Marquez M, Soriano-Maldonado A, Artero EG; EFIBAR Study Group. Supervised exercise following bariatric surgery in morbid obese adults: CERT-based exercise study protocol of the EFIBAR randomised controlled trial. BMC Surg. 2019 Sep 5;19(1):127. doi: 10.1186/s12893-019-0566-9.

Artero EG, Ferrez-Marquez M, Torrente-Sanchez MJ, Martinez-Rosales E, Carretero-Ruiz A, Hernandez-Martinez A, Lopez-Sanchez L, Esteban-Simon A, Romero Del Rey A, Alcaraz-Ibanez M, Rodriguez-Perez MA, Villa-Gonzalez E, Barranco-Ruiz Y, Martinez-Forte S, Castillo C, Gomez Navarro C, Aceituno Cubero J, Reyes Parrilla R, Aparicio Gomez JA, Femia P, Fernandez-Alonso AM, Soriano-Maldonado A. Supervised Exercise Immediately After Bariatric Surgery: the Study Protocol of the EFIBAR Randomized Controlled Trial. Obes Surg. 2021 Oct;31(10):4227-4235. doi: 10.1007/s11695-021-05559-8. Epub 2021 Jul 15.