Weu Wang

Taipei Medical University | TMU · Department of Surgery

Background Patients with morbid obesity exhibit sustained weight loss after sleeve gastrectomy (SG), but some individuals exhibit subsequent weight regain in the following years. Early weight loss was proven as a predictor of short- and mid-term weight loss and regain. However, the long-term effects of early weight loss have yet to be fully investi...

Introduction: Taiwan is a leading country regarding bariatric surgery in Asia-Pacific. Since 2010, the Taiwan Society for Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery (TSMBS) has been accountable for the national evolution of bariatric surgery and inaugurated a national database accordingly. This study aimed to analyze the bariatric surgery trends and progress...

Introduction Previous studies have demonstrated that one anastomosis gastric bypass (OAGB) is not inferior to Roux-en-Y gastric bypass (RYGB) in treating obesity. However, high level evidence comparing the efficacy and safety of both procedures in type 2 diabetes (T2D) treatment is still lacking, which is another main aim of bariatric surgery. The...

Background On November 25, 2021, the IFSO-Asia–Pacific Chapter (IFSO-APC) Virtual Meeting 2021 was held online, and the representatives from the Asia–Pacific region presented 10 years of change in bariatric/metabolic surgery and the influence of COVID-19 in the special session of “IFSO-APC National Reports 2010–2020”. We herein report the summarize...

Background Limited studies have focused on diabetes relapse after metabolic surgery, especially among Asians. Objectives To identify the predictors of diabetes relapse following initial postoperative remission in Asia. Setting Four tertiary hospitals Methods We assessed 342 patients (age, 41.0±10.8 years; body mass index (BMI), 39.6±7.3 kg/m²) w...

IntroductionAsian patients with diabetes exhibit different characteristics from Western patients. However, limited large-scale data are available on metabolic surgery procedures in Asia. We compared the short-term efficacies of metabolic surgery procedures for the management of Asian patients with different severities of diabetes.Methods We include...

Colorectal cancer (CRC) is a worldwide health problem. Glucose-regulated protein 94 (GRP94) is known as an important endoplasmic reticulum-stress response protein that shows correlation with aggressive cancer behavior. However, the role of GRP94 in CRC is still unclear. Our results showed that silencing GRP94 (GRP94-KD) reduced cell proliferation,...

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is a global health problem. Currently, there is no effective therapeutic strategy for HCC. Methyl gallate (MG), from plant-derived phenolic gallic acid, has exhibited antitumor efficacy. However, the effect of MG on HCC is unclear. In vitro growth activity was detected by a sulforhodamine assay. A zebrafish xenotransp...

Background Sleeve gastrectomy (SG) is the most common surgery for severe obesity. Patients lose weight post-SG and regain some weight in the following years. Early weight loss predicts weight loss after SG. However, etiologies of weight loss and regain after SG remain unclear. Objectives To investigate the effects of early weight loss on medium-te...

Barium peritonitis is a rare but life-threatening complication following gastrointestinal contrast study. We presented the case of a patient suffering from intestinal perforation after undergoing small bowel series. Although later computed tomography confirmed the diagnosis, prudent interpretation of the plain X-ray film might expedite diagnosis an...

Aim: To assess the outcomes of metabolic surgery in overweight and obese patients in Asia with type 2 diabetes (T2D). Materials and methods: The treatment outcomes of 1999 patients from the Asian Diabetes Surgery Summit database were analysed. The changes in treatment effects across time were assessed with respect to the surgical procedures perf...

Introduction Many risk prediction models of diabetes remission after bariatric and metabolic surgery have been proposed. Most models have been created using Roux-en-Y gastric bypass cohorts. However, validation of these models in sleeve gastrectomy (SG) is limited. The objective of our study is to validate the performance of risk prediction models...

Purpose: To assess the reduction of 6 and 12 months postoperatively of Framingham risk score in morbidly obese patients with laparoscopic sleeve gastrectomy (LSG). Material and methods: In total, 870 morbid obesity patients received LSG in Taipei Medical University Hospital from June 2007 to June 2014 were retrospectively studied preoperatively,...

Background: Triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) is defined by reduced expression of the estrogen receptor, progesterone receptor, and HER2. TNBC is an especially aggressive group of breast cancers with poor prognosis. There are currently no validated molecular targets to effectively treat this disease. Thus, it is necessary to identify effective...

Background: Laparoscopic surgery has become the standard for treating appendicitis. The cosmetic benefits of using single-incision laparoscopy are well known, but its duration, complications and time to recovery have not been well documented. We compared 2 laparoscopic approaches for treating appendicitis and evaluated postoperative pain, complica...

Background: Micro (mi) RNAs have been found to play an important role in the regulation of adipogenesis and insulin sensitivity. However, associations between miRNA and insulin signalling-related gene expressions in abdominal adipose tissues in obese subjects remain unclear. Methods: We used a microarray platform to screen miRNA expressions in a...

Thrombomodulin (TM) is highly expressed in endothelial cells and plays the key role in maintaining physical homeostasis. In addition, many pieces of evidence also show that TM contains the diagnostic value for malignant diseases. TM has been found to correlate with metastatic status in multiple cancers, but its role in prostate cancer progression r...

This study investigated the impacts of two different bariatric surgeries on the body composition of morbidly obese patients in Taiwan. Also, the differences in body composition changes between genders were compared. In total, 198 patients who underwent bariatric surgery were included, with 130 receiving a sleeve gastrectomy (SG) and 68 receiving ad...

Thrombomodulin (TM), a natural anticoagulation factor, maintains circulation homeostasis in endothelial cells. TM has additional roles in modulating inflammation, thrombosis, and carcinogenesis. However, there is little information on the role of TM in the progression and metastasis of ovarian cancer. RNA silencing and cDNA expression vectors were...

MicroRNAs (miRNAs) play an essential role in regulating gene expression in normal and malignant cells. Expression of the microRNA-200 (miR-200) family has been correlated with malignancy in cancers. However, whether miR-200a/b plays a role in curcumin-mediated treatment of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is unknown. We performed miRNA array analyses...

The aim of the study is to investigate the efficacy of different dosages of single bolus propofol administered on the basis of total body weight or corrected body weight for the intravenous induction of anesthesia in obese patients undergoing bariatric surgery. Thirty-eight obese patients with a body mass index (BMI) of 30 kg/m(2) or greater were r...

Background: Laparoscopic rectal cancer surgery is regarded as more complex because of its technical difficulties in pelvic exposure, dissection, and sphincter preservation. This study therefore aimed to investigate the feasibility of laparoscopic resection for low rectal cancer using intersphincteric resection (ISR) and to assess its short-term on...

Hyperuricemia is closely associated with obesity and metabolic abnormalities, which is also an independent risk factor for cardiovascular diseases. The PPARγ gene, which is linked to obesity and metabolic abnormalities in Han Chinese, might be considered a top candidate gene that is involved in hyperuricemia. This study recruited 457 participants,...

Background: Hyperuricemia is associated with obesity. Few studies have reported the effects of different types of bariatric surgery on uric acid metabolism. The aim of our study was to determine the relationships between serum uric acid reduction and estrogen receptor-α (ESR1) gene polymorphism, as well as the type of bariatric surgery received. T...

Background/aims: Hepatic progenitor cells (HPCs) activation, proliferative ductular reaction (DR), replicative arrest and Notch signaling have been demonstrated in a variety of human liver diseases. The relationships are poorly understood in morbid obesity. We investigated factors responsible for the HPCs/DR, replicative arrest and Notch signaling...

Background: Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is associated with obesity. We retrospectively studied the clinicopathology and different hepatic adipocytokine expressions between nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) and non-NASH in morbid obesity. Methods: We enrolled 40 patients undergoing liver biopsy during bariatric surgery. We analyzed...

Pathologic complete response has been proven to have oncological benefits for locally advanced rectal cancer treated with chemoradiation therapy. The aims of this study are to analyze and determine the factors to predict pathologic complete response for patients treated with preoperative neoadjuvant therapy. Patients with biopsy-proven, locally adv...

In this study, we intended to dissect the mechanism of 4-(Methylnitrosamino)-1-(3-pyridyl)-1-butanone (NNK)-enhanced migration of gastric cancer. Smoking has been defined as a risk factor for gastric cancer. Tobacco-specific carcinogen, NNK, was reported to enhance cancer progression in gastric cancer. Currently, metastasis is the major issue for c...

Glucose-regulated protein 78 (GRP78) plays an important role in embryonic development and cancer progression. However, there is little information regarding the regulation of GRP78 in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) metastasis. We used RNA silencing and cDNA expression vectors to manipulate target gene expression in HCC cells. The transwell migratio...

Significant variability in weight loss and glycemic control has been observed in obese patients receiving bariatric surgery. Genetic factors may play a role in the different outcomes. Five hundred and twenty severely obese patients with body mass index (BMI) ≥35 were recruited. Among them, 149 and 371 subjects received laparoscopic adjustable gastr...

Long-term cigarette smoking increases the risk of colorectal cancer mortality. Tobacco's addictive toxin, nicotine, was reported to increase DNA synthesis of colon cancer cells. Because metastasis is the major cause of cancer death, the influence of nicotine on the migration of colon cancer cells remains to be determined. The influence of nicotine...

Our aim was to investigate whether appendix diameter is an independent risk factor for wound infection in laparoscopic appendectomy (LA). Patients who underwent LA (n = 582) were grouped into those with wound infections and those without. Possible factors associated with wound infection were analyzed using univariate and multivariate logistic regre...

The objective was to study the mechanism of nicotine-enhanced migration of gastric cancer cells. Long-term cigarette smoking increases the risk of gastric cancer mortality. Tobacco-specific mitogen, nicotine, was reported to correlate with cancer progression on gastric cancer. Since metastasis is the major cause of cancer death, the influence of ni...

Glucose-regulated protein 78 (GRP78) plays an important role in the therapeutic treatment and progression of cancer. However, little is known about the effect of GRP78 expression to curcumin in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). In this study, we generated GRP78 knockdown cells (GRP78KD) by a short interfering RNA (siRNA) technique. The antiproliferat...

Single incision laparoscopic cholecystectomy (SILC) is a rapidly evolving field because of the reduced incisional morbidity, better cosmetic result, shorter hospital stay, and quicker return to activity. We report a technique and retrospectively reviewed our initial experience on SILC. To evaluate the feasibility and safety of the SILC using standa...

Late postoperative intra-abdominal infections after laparoscopic gastric banding are extremely rare and may or may not be associated with the device following uncomplicated adjustable gastric banding procedures. The spectrum of pathogens associated with intra-abdominal infections is diverse and depends on the origin of the infection. Streptococci i...

A 34-year-old man underwent gastroscopy to evaluate episodes of difficulty in swallowing. Gastroscopy revealed suspected extraluminal compression in the oesophageal–cardiac junction (fig 1). History of epigastric fullness was also noted. Abdominal ultrasonography revealed a cystic lesion between the left lobe of the liver and the oesophagus. Abdomi...

Compared with conventional pharmacological therapies, bariatric surgery has been shown to cause greater and- sustained weight loss. It was aimed to evaluate weight loss in obese patients after laparoscopic adjustable gastric banding surgery using information typically available during the initial evaluation studied before bariatric surgery and gene...

Differences were compared between laparoscopic surgery with and without hand-assisted laparoscopic technique (HALS) in order to assess whether HALS is a safe and feasible alternative to laparotomy and to determine what factors contributed to successful laparoscopic liver surgery. From a total of 416 liver resections, 45 patients with 46 hepatic tum...

Appendiceal intussusception is a rare entity that is difficult to diagnosis before surgery both clinically and radiologically. We report here a case of a 55-year-old woman with a 6-month history of right lower abdominal pain caused by appendiceal intussusception. Laparoscopic appendectomy was performed. Endometriosis foci were identified in the app...

Laparoscopically assisted distal gastrectomy has been used for distal part early gastric cancer resection. However, use of totally laparoscopic gastric cancer resection remains limited because of technical problems, especially when standard D2 nodal dissection was applied. We had reported the first totally laparoscopic Billroth II (BII) subtotal ga...

Nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) and gallbladder disease (GD) are members of metabolic syndrome in morbidly obesity. Insulin resistance is a risk factor for NASH and GD. The aim of the present study was to investigate the relationship between insulin resistance (HOMA-IR), liver fibrosis, NASH and GD in morbidly obese patients who presented with...

Laparoscopic gastric bypass resulted in significant weight loss and resolution of type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). The current indication for bariatric surgery is mainly applied for patients with body mass index (BMI)>35 kg/m2 with comorbidity status. However, little is known concerning T2DM patients with BMI<35 kg/m2. Recent studies have suggested...

Gastric cancer remains a leading cause of death worldwide. Post-operative complication is one important factor which causes mortality of gastric cancer patients after gastrectomy. Better prediction of post-operative complication before gastrectomy can significantly reduce post-operative mortality and morbidity. Therefore, 3 data mining techniques w...

Laparoscopic antireflux surgery (LARS) has long been introduced as an alternative method for the treatment of gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) in young adults. However, the safety of this procedure and the associated improvement in the quality of life for the elderly are rarely discussed. This study compared the results between young and elde...

Bariatric surgery is the only effective and long-lasting treatment of morbidly obese patients. However, the safety and efficacy of bariatric surgery in patients with hepatitis B viral (HBV) infection is not clear. The aim of the present study is to investigate whether HBV infection influences clinic features and outcomes of bariatric surgery. The p...

Gastric bypass surgery is an effective and long-lasting treatment of morbidly obese patients. However, the bypass limb may need to be tailored in morbidly obese patients with a wide range of obesity. The aim of the present study was to report clinical result of tailored bypass limb in a group of patients receiving laparoscopic mini-gastric bypass s...

Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease is prevalent in obese patients. Liver biopsy remains the best diagnostic tool for confirmation. We evaluated the effectiveness of macroscopic parameters of laparoscopy in diagnosis of liver diseases. Moreover, correlations of laparoscopy with histology and laboratory data were also studied. From December 2004 to Ap...

Surgery is the only long-lasting effective treatment for morbid obesity. Prediction on successful weight loss after surgery by data mining technologies is lacking. We analyze the available information during the initial evaluation of patients referred to bariatric surgery by data mining methods for predictors of successful weight loss. 249 patients...

Variability in weight loss has been observed from morbidly obese patients receiving bariatric operations. Genetic effects may play a crucial role in this variability. 304 morbidly obese patients (BMI > or =39) were recruited, 77 receiving laparoscopic adjustable gastric banding (LAGB) and 227 laparoscopic mini-gastric bypass (LMGB), and 304 matched...

Obesity is a risk factor for gallbladder disease. The authors analyze the prevalence and clinicopathology of gallbladder disease among obese patients in Taiwan. Prevalence and various clinical factors associated with cholelithiasis were studied in 199 patients who were undergoing bariatric surgery for obesity. Clinical data (gender, age, BMI and as...

Obesity is a chronic inflammatory condition, with related steatohepatitis and liver fibrosis. The authors analyzed the hepatic histopathology in morbidly obese patients and predictors of concurrence of clinical and/ or histopathologic findings of steatohepatitis with other forms of chronic liver disease. The histopathologic findings in the liver of...

Laparoscopic adjustable gastric banding (LAGB) is a newly developed minimally invasive surgical procedure for the treatment of morbid obesity. This study was conducted to evaluate body weight loss, surgical complications, and comorbidities after LAGB surgery. Ninety-one morbidly obese patients (mean age, 31.2 years; mean preoperative weight, 120.8...

Morbid obesity is a risk for fascial wound dehiscence and incisional hernia after abdominal surgery. The development of minimally invasive surgical techniques has led to a dramatic decrease in these complications. However, laparoscopic surgery may still be followed by trocar-wound herniation. Various methods have been advocated for its prevention....

Laparoscopic adjustable gastric banding (LAGB) is a safe and effective treatment for morbid obesity. Previous studies in Western countries disclosed a significant improvement in co-morbidities and health-related quality of life. Data from Asia and regarding the specific GI quality of life following LAGB are lacking. From May 2002 to May 2005, 107 c...

This study aimed to evaluate whether laparoscopic appendectomy is suitable for training residents to become proficient in laparoscopic surgery. A total of 1574 laparoscopic appendectomies were performed at En-Chu-Kong Hospital between January 1998 and December 2003 (788 men and 786 women). These cases were divided into three groups: 543 cases (in 1...

Gastrojejunostomy through laparotomy is a traditional procedure for the relief of gastric outlet obstruction in patients with unresectable carcinoma of the gastric antrum. However, patients face pain and high rates of morbidity and mortality after this operation. We present two cases of gastrojejunostomy for unresectable and obstructing gastric ant...

Helicobacter pylori (HP) infection is linked to weight control through gastric inflammation-induced deregulation of satiety-related hormone, and eradication of HP before a weight reduction operation has been advocated. We aimed to examine the impact of HP infection and corpus gastritis on preoperative patient characteristics, postoperative complica...

We report the case of a 51-year-old man who had abdominal distension and intermittent cramping pain for 4 months. A lower gastrointestinal double-contrast study revealed a protruding mass at the transverse colon. Endoscopic ultrasonography showed a lesion arising from the submucosal layer. Instead of a laparotomy, the lesion was removed laparoscopi...

Vertical banded gastroplasty (VBG) has been a popular bariatric operation for the past 2 decades, and this operation has evolved into a laparoscopic procedure. However, reports of laparoscopic VBG (LVBG) from large series with longer results are limited. From October 1998 to May 2002, 612 consecutive patients underwent LVBG. Mean age was 30.1 years...

This prospective, randomized trial compared the safety and effectiveness of laparoscopic Roux-en-Y gastric bypass (LRYGBP) and laparoscopic mini-gastric bypass (LMGBP) in the treatment of morbid obesity. LRYGBP has been the gold standard for the treatment of morbid obesity. While LMGBP has been reported to be a simple and effective treatment, data...

Mucinous cystadenoma is a rare lesion of the vermiform appendix and is seldom diagnosed before surgery, although radiologic and ultrasonographic findings have been reported. We present the case of a 65-year-old female with rheumatoid arthritis who presented with general malaise, poor appetite, fever, and right upper and lower quadrant pain of about...

There is a world-wide epidemic of overweight, obesity and morbid obesity. Bariatric surgery today, as the only effective therapy for morbid obesity, is expanding exponentially to meet the global epidemic of morbid obesity. Bariatric surgeons in the Asia-Pacific region had founded the Asia-Pacific Bariatric Surgery Group (APBSG) at Seoul, Korea on O...

The laparoscopic mini-gastric bypass (MGB) is a modification of Mason's loop gastric bypass, but with a long lesser curvature tube. With weight loss results similar to laparoscopic Roux-en-Y gastric bypass (LRYGBP), the MGB is a simpler operation with a low complication rate. Controversy exists concerning the efficacy and side-effects of this proce...

Individuals with the metabolic syndrome (MS), a clustering of risk factors (high levels of triglycerides and serum glucose, low level of high-density-lipoprotein cholesterol, high blood pressure, abdominal obesity) defined by the Third Report of the National Cholesterol Education Program Expert Panel of Detection, Evaluation, and Treatment of High...