Screening Risks of Alcohol Abuse, Depressive Symptoms, and Decreased Health-Related Quality of Life in Post-Bariatric Patients and Their Relations to Weight Regain

Purpose Not all patients who underwent bariatric surgery keep their regular medical follow-up. We screened alcohol use, depressive symptoms, and health-related quality of life (HRQoL) in post-bariatric patients who have lost medical follow-up at their first appointment in our healthcare unit. These screened disorders were compared between low vs. high ratios of weight regain (RWR) and correlated with surgical outcomes. Material and Methods Ninety-four post-bariatric patients without medical follow-up (87.2% female, aged 42 +/- 9 years, BMI = 32.9 +/- 6.5kg/m(2)) were included. They underwent Roux-en-Y gastric bypass (n = 80) or sleeve gastrectomy (n = 14). They were divided into high RWR (>= 20%) and low RWR (< 20%) groups. We used Alcohol Use Disorders Inventory Test, Beck Depression Inventory, and 36-Item Short-Form Health Survey. Results Neck and waist circumferences, diastolic blood pressure, and time since surgery were higher in the high than low RWR group (P= 0.05). No differences between groups for alcohol use and depressive symptoms were detected (P= 0.07), but those who regained more weight exhibited poorer health scores in physical functioning, physical role limitations, bodily pain, and vitality (P= 0.05). In the low RWR group, the RWR was inversely correlated to physical/social functioning and vitality. Positive associations were present between RWR vs. depressive symptoms, while negative ones were noted to physical functioning and general health perception in the high RWR group. Conclusions HRQoL has deteriorated in those post-bariatric patients without medical follow-up who regained more weight, possibly indicating the need for regular long-term health care.