Skip to Content
800-533-8762
  • Careers
  • Newsroom
  • Health Care Professionals
  • About Us
  • Contact Us
UPMC
  • Find a Doctor
  • Services
    • Frequently Searched Services
    • Frequently Searched Services
      Allergy & Immunology Behavioral & Mental Health Cancer Ear, Nose & Throat Endocrinology Gastroenterology Heart & Vascular Imaging Neurosciences Orthopaedics
      Physical Rehabilitation Plastic & Reconstructive Surgery Primary Care Senior Services Sports Medicine Telemedicine Transplant Surgery Walk-In Care Weight Management Women’s Health
      See all Services
    • Services by Region
    • Find a UPMC health care facility close to you quickly by browsing by region.
      UPMC in Western Pa. Western Pa. and New York
      UPMC in Central Pa. Central Pa.
      UPMC in North Central Pa. North Central Pa.
      UPMC in Western Md. Maryland & West Virginia
    • See All Services
  • Locations
    • Locations by Type
    • Locations by Type
      UPMC hospitals
      Hospitals
      Physical Therapy
      Physical Therapy
      Urgent care
      Walk-In Care
      UPMC Outpatient Centers
      Outpatient Centers
      UPMC Imaging Services
      Imaging
      Community Health Centers
      Community Health Centers
      See All Locations
    • Locations by Region
    • Locations by Region
      UPMC in Southwest Pa. Southwest Pa.
      UPMC in North Central Pa. North Central Pa.
      UPMC in Northwest Pa and Ny. Northwest Pa. & Western N.Y.
      UPMC in West Central Pa. West Central Pa.
      UPMC in Central Pa. Central Pa.
      UPMC in Western Md. Maryland & West Virginia
    • See All Locations
  • Patients & Visitors
    • Patient & Visitor Resources
    • Patient & Visitor Resources
      Patients and Visitors Resources Pay a Bill Classes & Events Medical Records Health Library Patient Information
      Patient Portals Privacy Information Shared Decision Making Traveling Patients Visitor Information
      Man uses mobile phone
      Pay a Bill
      Nurse reviews medical chart
      Request Medical Records
  • Patient Portals
  • Find Covid-19 updates
  • Schedule an appointment
  • Request medical records
  • Pay a bill
  • Learn about financial assistance
  • Find classes & events
  • Send a patient an eCard
  • Make a donation
  • Volunteer
  • Read HealthBeat blog
  • Explore UPMC Careers
Skip to Content
UPMC
  • Patient Portals
  • For Patients & Visitors
    • Find a Doctor
    • Locations
    • Patient & Visitor Resources
    • Pay a Bill
    • Services
    • More
      • Medical Records
      • Financial Assistance
      • Classes & Events
      • HealthBeat Blog
      • Health Library
  • About UPMC
    • Why UPMC
    • Facts & Stats
    • Supply Chain Management
    • Community Commitment
    • More
      • Financials
      • Support UPMC
      • UPMC Apps
      • UPMC Enterprises
      • UPMC International
  • For Health Care Professionals
    • Physician Information
    • Resources
    • Education & Training
    • Departments
    • Credentialing
  • Careers
  • Contact Us
  • Newsroom
  • UPMC >
  • Media Relations >
  • News Releases >
  • 022724 diabetes control
Media Relations
News Releases
Central Pa. News
North Central Pa. News
Contact Us
Experts
Community-Focused News
Media Kits
Media RSS
Media Relations
News Releases
Central Pa. News
North Central Pa. News
Contact Us
Experts
Community-Focused News
Media Kits
Media RSS

Chat Keywords List

  • cancel or exit: Stops your conversation
  • start over: Restarts your current scenario
  • help: Shows what this bot can do
  • terms: Shows terms of use and privacy statement
  • feedback: Give us feedback
Continue
Chat with UPMC
RESTART
MENU
CLOSE

Pitt Study Shows Bariatric Surgery is More Effective Than Medical and Lifestyle Interventions for Diabetes Control and Remission

For Journalists

Liz Reid
Manager
412-514-7866
reide4@upmc.edu

Allison Hydzik
Director, Science and Research
412-647-9975
hydzikam@upmc.edu

Want to Make an Appointment or Need Patient Information?
Contact UPMC at

1-800-533-8762.

Go to Find a Doctor to search for a UPMC doctor.

2023 PITT HS

2/27/2024

PITTSBURGH – Bariatric surgery is more effective than medical and lifestyle modifications for achieving long-term Type 2 diabetes control and remission, according to new research led by a University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine surgeon-scientist and published today in JAMA.

In the largest and longest randomized follow-up study to date, the researchers also found that bariatric surgery improved cholesterol and triglyceride levels more effectively than did medical and lifestyle modifications. Since diabetes and cholesterol are important risk factors for heart disease, the management of both may contribute to fewer heart attacks, strokes and other complications.

COURCOULAS_ANITA_MD_HR“This analysis is the strongest evidence we have to date that bariatric surgery is a safe and effective tool for achieving diabetes control and remission,” said lead author Anita Courcoulas, M.D., M.P.H., professor in Pitt’s Department of Surgery and chief of the Minimally Invasive Bariatric Surgery Program at UPMC.

Researchers compared various outcomes — measures of blood sugar control (HbA1c), weight loss, as well as insulin and other diabetes medication usage — for participants enrolled in four separate, randomized clinical trials carried out between May 2007 and August 2013. All four trials included patients with Type 2 diabetes and obesity who either underwent bariatric surgery or participated in a medical and lifestyle program based on established interventions shown to reduce diabetes risk. The researchers then pooled the data together into one study completed in 2022. Long-term outcomes were analyzed at seven and, when possible, 12 years post-randomization. 

Patients in the bariatric surgery group consistently had lower HbA1c levels — reflecting better blood sugar control — than did the medical/lifestyle group at each follow-up point, despite starting the study with higher baseline values. At year seven, 18.2% of participants in the surgery group had achieved diabetes remission, compared to 6.2% in the medical/lifestyle group. At year 12, the difference was even more stark: no patients in the medical/lifestyle group were in diabetes remission, compared to 12.7% in the surgery group. Even in those who did not experience remission, bariatric surgery led to superior blood sugar control with less diabetes medication use than did medical/lifestyle treatment.

The results were consistent across weight class groups, showing that surgery is equally beneficial for patients with body mass indexes (BMI) below and above 35 kg/m2 — the typical cutoff for bariatric surgery treatment. 

“This indicates that people with Type 2 diabetes — even those below the BMI threshold for bariatric surgery for weight loss alone — should be offered bariatric surgery as a treatment for inadequately controlled diabetes,” said Courcoulas. “These results further support the need for flexible and patient-centered care, based on an individual’s health problems and goals.”

Though the goal of this study was to analyze rates of diabetes control and remission, researchers also found that bariatric surgery was superior to medical/lifestyle interventions in terms of durable weight loss. At year 12, surgery patients had sustained an average of 19.3% weight loss, compared to 10.8% for patients in the medical/lifestyle intervention group. Bariatric surgery

Researchers did not find differences in mortality or major cardiovascular events between the two groups. However, anemia, fractures and adverse gastrointestinal symptoms such as nausea and abdominal pain were more common among participants who underwent bariatric surgery. 

The analysis used data from randomized clinical trials performed at Pitt, Cleveland Clinic, Joslin Diabetes Center and Brigham and Women’s Hospital and the University of Washington and Kaiser Permanente Washington. Taken together, the trials included 355 patients with Type 2 diabetes. The trials were performed before the widespread availability of GLP-1 agonist medications for diabetes management and weight loss.

Medical and lifestyle interventions across all four sites were based on national standards for intensive diabetes management and included physical activity and nutrition tracking, enhanced engagement with the health care team, stress management, support groups and medications available at the time of the studies’ enrollment. Bariatric surgery procedures included Roux-en-Y gastric bypass, sleeve gastrectomy, and adjustable gastric banding.

Other authors on the study were Mary Elizabeth Patti, M.D., of Harvard Medical School; Bo Hu, Ph.D., Gerald J. Beck, Ph.D., and Ali Aminan, M.D., all of Cleveland Clinic; David E. Arterburn, M.D., of Kaiser Permanente; Donald C. Simonson, M.D. Sc.D., and Ashley H. Vernon, M.D., both of Brigham and Women’s Hospital and Harvard Medical School; John M. Jakicic, Ph.D., of the University of Kansas Medical Center; Philip R. Schauer, M.D., of Metamor Institute; Sangeeta R. Kashyap, M.D., of Weill Cornell Medicine; David E. Cummings, M.D., of the University of Washington and VA Puget Sound Health Care System; and John P. Kirwan, Ph.D., of Louisiana State University.

This research was supported by the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (DK114156). 


PHOTO DETAILS: (click images for high-res versions)

First photo:

CREDIT: UPMC
CAPTION: Anita Courcoulas, MD, Chief, Minimally Invasive Bariatric & General Surgery at UPMC

Second photo:

CREDIT: Getty Images
CAPTION: Bariatric surgery has proven to be effective for long-term diabetes control and remission

UPMC
200 Lothrop Street Pittsburgh, PA 15213

412-647-8762 800-533-8762

Patients And Visitors
  • Find a Doctor
  • Locations
  • Pay a Bill
  • Patient & Visitor Resources
  • Disabilities Resource Center
  • Services
  • Medical Records
  • No Surprises Act
  • Price Transparency
  • Financial Assistance
  • Classes & Events
  • Health Library
Health Care Professionals
  • Physician Information
  • Resources
  • Education & Training
  • Departments
  • Credentialing
Newsroom
  • Newsroom Home
  • Inside Life Changing Medicine Blog
  • News Releases
About
  • Why UPMC
  • Facts & Stats
  • Supply Chain Management
  • Community Commitment
  • Financials
  • Supporting UPMC
  • HealthBeat Blog
  • UPMC Apps
  • UPMC Enterprises
  • UPMC Health Plan
  • UPMC International
  • Nondiscrimination Policy
Life changing is...
Follow UPMC
  • Contact Us
  • Website/Email Terms of Use
  • Medical Advice Disclaimer
  • Privacy Information
  • Active Privacy Alerts
  • Sitemap
© 2025 UPMC I Affiliated with the University of Pittsburgh Schools of the Health Sciences Supplemental content provided by Healthwise, Incorporated. To learn more, visit healthwise.org
Find Care
Providers
Video Visit
Portal Login