Em. Kopecschrader et al., PSYCHOSOCIAL OUTCOME AND LONG-TERM WEIGHT-LOSS AFTER GASTRIC RESTRICTIVE SURGERY FOR MORBID-OBESITY, Obesity surgery, 4(4), 1994, pp. 336-339
Forty-five of 60 consecutive morbidly obese patients who had a vertica
l banded gastroplasty carried out by the one surgeon between 1982 and
1988 were assessed by questionnaire at long-term follow-up in 1993. Ei
ghteen patients (40%) had maintained their BMI at close to the lowest
achieved levels. Twenty-seven patients (60%) had had a significant ris
e in BMI, and 14 of these (31%) had gained weight to return close to o
r above their pre-surgery BMI levels. No reliable predictors of succes
sful long-term weight loss were detected in the pre-operative data. Fo
rty-eight patients (84%) were satisfied with their surgical treatment.
Twenty patients (44%) reported improved social life after surgery. Tw
enty-one patients (46%) reported a similar social life and only four p
atients (9%) a worse social life. At follow up five patients (12%) rep
orted emotional problems related to their weight loss surgery and two
of this group had had psychiatric counselling for depression. Pre-oper
ative psychiatric assessment appeared to have facilitated intervention
by the psychiatrist with these patients. Gastric restrictive surgery,
however, remains unpredictable in its long-term weight loss effect.