Table 2.
Mean differences for weight reduction, zinc levels, taste strips, and questionnaire outcomes at 3- and 6-month follow-ups.
| 3 months | Diff.† | 6 months | Diff. | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SG (n = 25) | GB (n = 18) | SG (n = 20) | GB (n = 17) | |||
| BMI reduction kg/m2, mean (SD) | 8.52 (5.9) | 4.35 (3.4) | 0.01 | 10.9 (5.7) | 6.0 (3.8) | 0.005 |
| Body weight reduction kg, mean (SD) | 20.8 (7.1) | 13.4 (7.1) | 0.001 | 30.6 (16.1) | 17.9 (8.8) | 0.006 |
| Zinc mg/dl, mean (SD) | 71.4 (15.2) | 68.9(12.7) | 0.51 | 84.9 (21.6) | 67.5(9.16) | 0.004 |
|
| ||||||
| Questionnaire elements n (%) | ||||||
| Appetite change, n = 43 | 18 (72.0%) | 13 (72.2%) | 0.98 | 17 (85%) | 10 (63%) | 0.15 |
| Taste change, n = 43 | 9 (36%) | 13 (72%) | 0.03 | 9 (45%) | 9 (56%) | 0.74 |
| Smell change, n = 42 | 4 (17%) | 4 (22%) | 0.70 | 3 (15%) | 4 (25%) | 0.68 |
| Overall loss of taste, n = 43 | 2 (8%) | 6 (33%) | 0.05 | 2 (10%) | 5 (31%) | 0.20 |
| Increased taste to sweet foods, n = 20 | 6 (75%) | 7 (58%) | 0.64 | 7 (50%) | 3 (42%) | 0.99 |
| Decreased taste to sweet foods, n = 20 | 2 (25%) | 6 (50%) | 0.37 | 2 (14%) | 2 (29%) | 0.57 |
| Increased taste to salty food, n = 19 | 4 (50%) | 4 (36%) | 0.65 | 1 (8%) | 0 (0%) | — |
| Decreased taste to salty foods, n = 19 | 0 (0%) | 2 (18%) | — | 2 (15%) | 1 (17%) | 0.99 |
| Increase taste to sour foods, n = 18 | 4 (16%) | 3 (17%) | 0.63 | 3 (23%) | 2 (33%) | 0.99 |
| Decreased taste to sour foods, n = 18 | 1 (13%) | 4 (40%) | 0.31 | 3 (23%) | 0 (0%) | — |
|
| ||||||
| Taste strips' outcomes | ||||||
| Overall hypogeusia, n (%) | 9 (36.0) | 8 (44.4) | 0.75 | 2 (11.1) | 7 (44.0) | 0.052 |
| Sweet hypogeusia, n (%) | 6 (24.0) | 6 (33.3) | 0.51 | 2 (10.5) | 2 (12.5) | 0.86 |
| Sour hypogeusia, n (%) | 4 (16.0) | 5 (27.8) | 0.45 | 3 (15.8) | 5 (31.3) | 0.42 |
| Salt hypogeusia, n (%) | 5 (20.0) | 6 (33.3) | 0.48 | 4 (21.1) | 4 (25) | 0.78 |
| Bitter hypogeusia, n (%) | 3 (13.6) | 0 (0) | — | 0 (0) | 0 (0) | — |
†The test for a difference was performed by using an independent t-test for parametric variables. Person's chi-square test was used for the difference in proportions, with a P value of 0.05, while the † Fisher's exact test for low expected frequencies was used for the taste change questionnaire outcome (i.e., 20% of the expected frequencies at <5), with a P value of 0.05. †Fisher's exact test was also used for the outcomes of the taste strips' test to illustrate the % of overall hypogeusia and % of hypogeusia in each taste quality during the follow-up period, and among patients who underwent sleeve gastrectomy and gastric bypass. Patients are subject to sleeve gastrectomy (SG) and gastric bypass (GB).