The relationship between weight loss and psychosocial functioning among bariatric surgery patients

• Published in: The American journal of surgery Vol. 199; no. 2; pp. 183 - 188
• Main Authors: Thonney, Barbara, Pataky, Zoltan, Badel, Sandra, Bobbioni-Harsch, Elisabetta, Golay, Alain
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: New York, NY Elsevier Inc 01.02.2010; Elsevier; Elsevier Limited
• Subjects: Adaptation, Psychological; Adult; Anxiety; Anxiety - psychology; Bariatric surgery; Biological and medical sciences; Body mass; Body mass index; Body weight loss; Bulimia; Bypasses; Depression; Depression - psychology; Disorders; Eating; Eating disorders; Feeding and Eating Disorders - psychology; Female; Gastric bypass; Gastric Bypass - psychology; Gastric Bypass - rehabilitation; Gastrointestinal surgery; General aspects; Humans; Medical sciences; Mental depression; Mental disorders; Mental health; Metabolic diseases; Miscellaneous; Morbid obesity; Multivariate Analysis; Obesity; Obesity, Morbid - psychology; Obesity, Morbid - surgery; Patients; Prospective Studies; Public health. Hygiene; Public health. Hygiene-occupational medicine; Social interactions; Surgery; Switzerland; Treatment Outcome; Weight Loss; Weight loss measurement; Switzerland; Depression; Anxiety; Morbid obesity; Bariatric surgery; Eating disorders; Mood disorder; Human; Affect affectivity; Weight loss; Anxiety disorder; Patient; Psychosocial factor; Eating disorder; Medicine; Social aspect; Public health
• ISSN: 0002-9610; 1879-1883; 1879-1883
• DOI: 10.1016/j.amjsurg.2008.12.028

Success after bariatric surgery should also reflect improvement in psychosocial functioning. The objective of this study was to assess the relationships between both mental health and eating disorders and weight loss in morbidly obese patients 2 years after gastric bypass. Forty-three obese women (mean age, 39.3 ± 1.4 years; mean body mass index, 44.7 ± 0.4 kg/m 2) were evaluated before and 1 and 2 years after gastric bypass. The Beck Depression Inventory and the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale were used for depression and anxiety evaluation and the Eating Disorder Inventory for eating disorder assessment. Decreases in depression ( P <.01), anxiety ( P <.05), and eating disorder ( P <.01) scores were measured 2 years after surgery. Both excess weight loss and change in body mass index were associated with improvements in all measured psychologic outcomes 2 years after surgery. The importance of weight loss is in relation to mental health 2 years after bariatric surgery. Psychologic outcomes and eating disorders did not predict weight loss 2 years after gastric bypass. However, these factors improved significantly after weight loss.