Influence of complications and extent of weight loss on quality of life after laparoscopic Roux-en-Y gastric bypass

Introduction: Obesity decreases health-related quality of life, but bariatric surgery improves it. This study evaluates the effect of laparoscopic Roux-en-Y gastric bypass, postoperative complications, and percentage of excess body weight loss on quality of life. Methods: SF-36v.1 questionnaires were administered preoperative (n = 505) 1 year (n = 237) and 2 years (n 106) following laparoscopic Roux-en-Y gastric bypass. Analysis was performed using Student's t-test and multiple logistic regression analysis. Complications were defined as requiring additional intervention or hospitalization. SF-36 responses were normalized to 1998 US norms. Results: Bariatric patients scored significantly lower on all scales compared to the normal population. Health-related quality of life notably improves after surgery. At 1 year, scores not only improved from baseline, but were higher than those of the non-obese reference population regardless of complications. Compared to patients at 2 years without complications, patients experiencing complications reported decreased scores, but scores remained higher than preoperative scores in five scales. At 1 and 2 years, <= 50% excess body weight loss decreased scores; however, scores were significantly improved from baseline. Conclusions: Health-related quality of life in bariatric patients is worse than in controls, but it improves 1 and 2 years after laparoscopic Roux-en-Y gastric bypass. Complications or <= 50% excess body weight loss slightly decreases this improvement.