Psychiatric Diagnosis and Weight Loss following Gastric Surgery for Obesity

Background: The authors examined associations between lifetime Axis I and Axis II disorders and weight loss following gastric surgery for morbid obesity. Methods: 44 morbidly obese subjects who had undergone vertical banded gastroplasty (VBG) were systematically interviewed with the Diagnostic Interview Schedule (DIS) and were administered the Personality Diagnostic Questionnaire (PDQ). Subjects were followed-up 6 months post-VBG to determine weight loss. Results: The subjects had a mean ± SD age of 37.7 ± 10.6 years.Their baseline weight was 135.3 ± 28.0 kg and their baseline body mass index (BMI) was 50.0 ± 7.4. 34 (77%) were female. Results of linear regressions show a significant association between baseline BMI and weight loss at 6-month follow-up. After adjustment for baseline BMI, there was a non-significant trend toward increased weight loss in association with alcohol abuse/dependence. Similarly, among our analysis of 41 subjects who had received the PDQ, we found a non-significant trend toward increased weight loss in association with "any" PDQ diagnosis and with antisocial personality disorder/trait after adjusting for baseline BMI. Conclusion: The data suggest that Axis I and Axis II diagnoses were not predictive of weight loss following VBG during a 6-month follow-up.