Adherence to outpatient program postoperative appointments after bariatric surgery

Surgery is the only treatment that has been proved to have beneficial long-term effects for the morbidly obese (body mass index >40 kg/m(2)). One of the requirements for the Centers for Excellence program instituted by American Society for Bariatric Surgery is to have a system in place to provide comprehensive follow-up care. A recent study showed that the complication rate after bariatric surgery is 39.6% during the 180 days after discharge. Inadequate adherence to follow-up care has been recognized as contributory to the development of complications after bariatric surgery. The purpose of this study was to examine the variables that relate to patients' adherence to scheduled appointments after bariatric surgery.

A block entry logistic regression analysis was done from a database of an outpatient bariatric program that contained cross-sectional data collected for 1 year. Patient adherence to follow-up was defined as having 1 postoperative follow-up appointment within 90 days of undergoing surgery. A total of 375 subjects completed the preoperative program and underwent either laparoscopic Roux-en-Y gastric bypass (84.3%) or gastric banding (15.7%).

Of the 14 variables used in the analysis, 5 were statistically significant (P <.05) predictors of adherence: age, body mass index, marital status, employment status, and insurance coverage.

Incorporation of the identified predictors into preoperative screening tools to flag patients at risk of nonadherence might improve follow-up care. Additional research is needed on possible interventions to decrease complications after bariatric surgery.