Study Finds More Teens Turning to Weight Loss Surgery than Ever Before

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More U.S. teens are turning to weight-loss surgery than ever before, according to a new study.

A study funded by the National Institutes of Health found the number of adolescents undergoing bariatric surgery increased annually from 2021 through 2023, with the biggest gains seen in Black and Hispanic teens.

“The number of U.S. adolescents having access to this treatment that we know is safe and effective is the highest it’s ever been, and hopefully it’s the start of a positive weight loss journey that will get them to better health,” said Sarah Messiah, Ph.D., M.P.H., professor of epidemiology and associate dean for research in the Peter O’Donnell Jr. School of Public Health, in a news release.

Funded by a grant from the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, the study looked at how often teens in the U.S. had weight-loss surgery from 2021 to 2023. Investigators were inspired to examine these trends because of interest in understanding whether the approval of a newer type of obesity medication, called GLP-1 receptor agonists (GLP-1 RAs), affected how many teens got surgery.

GLP-1 RA medications, which include names like semaglutide (Wegovy), have been the topic of discussion for several years as the U.S. deals with an obesity epidemic. Wegovy was approved for teens in 2022. Messiah and fellow researchers point out these medications help with weight loss but can be expensive or hard to get — especially for families on Medicaid or those in underserved communities.

To understand how treatment patterns shift, the researchers looked at national data from over 900 accredited hospitals and clinics performing weight-loss surgery. They wanted to see how often teens had weight-loss surgery before and after these new medications became available.

They also compared the trends between teens and adults and looked at differences by race and ethnicity. This helped researchers uncover whether certain groups were more or less likely to get surgery during this time. According to researchers, these comparisons are important because teens from different backgrounds do not always have the same access to care, and understanding those patterns can help doctors and policy makers improve treatment options for everyone.

The number of teens having weight-loss surgery went up each year: 1,376 in 2021, 1,490 in 2022, and 1,581 in 2023. The most common type of surgery was sleeve gastrectomy, which removes part of the stomach.

Hispanic and Black teens had the greatest increases in surgery during this time. Most teens who had surgery had a very high body mass index (BMI), with nearly 40% having a BMI over 50, which is used as the threshold for morbid obesity in medical circles.

In contrast, while adults also saw an increase in surgery from 2021 to 2022, their numbers fell in 2023. This drop may be linked to more adults using GLP-1 RA medications instead of surgery, according to investigators.

According to Messiah and fellow researchers, this study shows more teens — especially Hispanic and Black teens — are getting access to weight-loss surgery, which they believe may be partly due to new medical guidelines and the rising cost or limited access to weight-loss medications.

“Severe obesity is very common, much more common than it should be, and it is unlikely to respond to lifestyle interventions alone. I think the relative number of bariatric surgeries is still pretty low, given the potential benefit and need among kids,” said Sarah Barlow, M.D., M.P.H., professor of pediatrics at University of Texas Southwestern, who led the research with Messiah.