[Obesity, bariatric surgery and future fertility]

Obesity is an increasingly widespread health problem. In addition to comorbidities such as diabetes, hypertension, dyslipidemia and cardiovascular disease, obesity has a significant impact on reproductive life, including infertility, miscarriages and high prevalence of pregnancy complications. The present review describes the possible benefits of bariatric surgery regarding fertility and pregnancy outcome. It is well established that bariatric surgery leads to regular ovulatory cycles and improves spontaneous conception rates in obese women. While pregnancy after bariatric surgery is safe and associated with reduced pregnancy complications, pregnant women following bariatric surgery are still at high risk for preterm births and small dimensions of gestational age offsprings. The optimal interval that should be kept between surgery and subsequent pregnancy is controversial, with recent studies emphasizing the importance of nutritional balance rather than the time from surgery to conception as being the most important determinant. Strict peri-conceptional surveillance is mandatory in order to prevent nutritional deficiencies and for the early diagnosis of abnormal fetal growth.