AB059. SOH24AB_034. The influence of clinical and psychological wellbeing on the decision to proceed with bariatric surgery
General Surgery Session I

AB059. SOH24AB_034. The influence of clinical and psychological wellbeing on the decision to proceed with bariatric surgery

Bernadette O’Flynn1, Derbrenn O’Connor2, Gillian Moore-Groarke3, Colm O’Boyle2

1Department of Surgery, Cork University Hospital, Wilton, Cork, Ireland; 2Department of Surgery, Bons Secours Hospital, Cork, Ireland; 3Department of Surgery, The Cork Clinic, Cork, Ireland

Background: With the increase in the obesity epidemic, bariatric surgery rates have escalated exponentially. Despite this, a large proportion of those referred for bariatric consultation fail to follow through with surgery.

Methods: A retrospective case note and database review was carried out on a consecutive series of patients attending a single centre of excellence. All patients completed the psychological assessment tools—Beck Depression Index (BDI) and Hospital Anxiety Depression Score (HAD), prior to consultation. Demographic and clinical data were recorded.

Results: Between January 2017 and January 2021, 234 patients attended for an initial bariatric consultation and completed pre-consultation questionnaires. A total of 172 questionnaires were available for subsequent assessment. Seventy four percent (n=128) were female. Fifty four percent (n=93) underwent subsequent surgery. Private insurance cover had a significant influence on whether patients proceeded with surgery 81 (80%) vs. 13 (12%), P<0.05, Chi square. The overall BDI and HAD scores for the group were 14.63±10 and 6.34±10.5, respectively, indicating moderate depression. Patients not proceeding with surgery had a significantly higher BDI (16.2±10.1 vs. 13.2±10.5, P=0.04) and HAD score (7.2±4.6 vs. 5.5±4.2, P=0.01) than those who ultimately proceeded to surgery.

Conclusions: Unsurprisingly private insurance cover has a significant influence on the decision to proceed with bariatric surgical intervention, reaffirming that a much larger number of severely obese patients would likely undergo surgery if it were within their financial remit. Patients who decline subsequent bariatric surgical intervention have significantly higher initial depression and anxiety scores, suggesting a possible benefit for early psychological/psychiatric intervention in this group.

Keywords: Bariatric surgery; co-morbidities; psychological; gastric bypass; weight loss surgery

Acknowledgments

Funding: None.

Footnote

Conflicts of Interest: The authors have no conflicts of interest to declare.

Ethical Statement: The authors are accountable for all aspects of the work in ensuring that questions related to the accuracy or integrity of any part of the work are appropriately investigated and resolved.

Open Access Statement: This is an Open Access article distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 4.0 International License (CC BY-NC-ND 4.0), which permits the non-commercial replication and distribution of the article with the strict proviso that no changes or edits are made and the original work is properly cited (including links to both the formal publication through the relevant DOI and the license). See: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/.

doi: 10.21037/map-24-ab059
Cite this abstract as: O’Flynn B, O’Connor D, Moore-Groarke G, O’Boyle C. AB059. SOH24AB_034. The influence of clinical and psychological wellbeing on the decision to proceed with bariatric surgery. Mesentery Peritoneum 2024;8:AB059.

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