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World J Gastrointest Surg. Jun 27, 2026; 18(6): 117231
Published online Jun 27, 2026. doi: 10.4240/wjgs.117231
Published online Jun 27, 2026. doi: 10.4240/wjgs.117231
Anatomy of the pre-pyloric vein and right gastroepiploic branches: Guiding the transection initiation site for sleeve gastrectomy
Sheng-Nan Zhou, Hai-Tao Hu, Zong-Ze Li, Hua Yang, Chao-Feng Li, Xin Song, Tao Tang, Lei Zhou, Fan-Qiang Meng, Department of Gastrointestinal Surgery, China-Japan Friendship Hospital, Beijing 100029, China
Qing-Lin Li, Department of General Surgery, Chongqing Qianjiang Normal Hospital, Chongqing 409099, China
Co-first authors: Sheng-Nan Zhou and Hai-Tao Hu.
Author contributions: Zhou SN collected clinical data, participated in surgical operations, and drafted the manuscript; Hu HT performed statistical analysis, revised the manuscript, and verified data accuracy; Li QL assisted in intraoperative anatomical measurement and data sorting; Li ZZ was responsible for postoperative follow-up and metabolic indicator monitoring; Yang H provided technical support for surgical operation and data validation; Li CF participated in study design and constructive discussions; Song X organized clinical records and literature retrieval; Tang T and Zhou L revised the manuscript for academic rigor and language polish; Meng FQ conceived and designed the study, obtained funding support, approved the final version of the manuscript, and is the corresponding author. All authors read and approved the final manuscript. Zhou SN and Hu HT contributed equally to this work as co-first authors.
AI contribution statement: No part of the manuscript main text was generated by AI. ChatGPT was only used for language polishing and expression revision of the manuscript text. The research design and result interpretation were all completed independently by the author without any AI tools. All figures, charts and images in the manuscript are made by the author, not generated by any AI tools.
Supported by Chinese Rehabilitation Medicine Association, No. KFKT-2024-KY-001; Young Elite Scientists Sponsorship Program by CAST, No. YESS20230577; and Elite Medical Professionals Initiative of China-Japan Friendship Hospital, No. ZRJY2024-QM11 and No. ZRJY2024-QMPY43.
Institutional review board statement: The study has been approved by the Ethics Committee of the China-Japan Friendship Hospital, approval No. 2022-ky-221.
Informed consent statement: All participants enrolled in this study provided written informed consent prior to study initiation.
Conflict-of-interest statement: The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.
STROBE statement: The authors have read the STROBE Statement-checklist of items, and the manuscript was prepared and revised according to the STROBE Statement-checklist of items.
Data sharing statement: The data that support the findings of this study are available from the corresponding author upon reasonable request.
Corresponding author: Fan-Qiang Meng, Chief, Professor, Department of Gastrointestinal Surgery, China-Japan Friendship Hospital, No. 2 Yinghua Yuan East Street, Beijing 100029, China. mengfanqiang75@163.com
Received: December 5, 2025
Revised: January 9, 2026
Accepted: March 25, 2026
Published online: June 27, 2026
Processing time: 194 Days and 21 Hours
Revised: January 9, 2026
Accepted: March 25, 2026
Published online: June 27, 2026
Processing time: 194 Days and 21 Hours
Core Tip
Core Tip: This study identifies the AB distance (between the pre-pyloric vein and right gastroepiploic artery branch) as a stable anatomical marker for defining the transection initiation site for sleeve gastrectomy (SG). Unaffected by metabolic factors or body mass index, it enhances surgical precision. SG also yields short-term metabolic benefits, notably reduced fasting blood glucose.