Mood disorders in laparoscopic sleeve gastrectomy patients: does it affect early weight loss?

Research has demonstrated that laparoscopic Roux-en-Y gastric bypass patients with a lifetime history of a mood disorder have a lower percentage of excess weight loss (%EWL) compared with patients without this lifetime history. No studies have examined the effect of psychiatric history on postoperative outcomes among laparoscopic sleeve gastrectomy (LSG) patients. The objectives of the present study were to determine whether mood disorders relate to the first year of weight loss for patients undergoing LSG at an academic medical center.

A total of 104 patients (78.6% white and 71.2% women), with a median body mass index of 60.35 kg/m(2) (range 31.37-129.14) underwent LSG. The patients were prospectively followed up at 1, 3, 6, 9, and 12 months. The semistructured preoperative psychiatric evaluations demonstrated that 43.1% had a current, and 62.5% a lifetime, diagnosis of a mood disorder.

LSG patients with current mood disorders had a significantly lower %EWL than patients without a psychiatric diagnosis at the 1-, 3-, 6-, and 9-month follow-up visits. LSG patients with a lifetime history of a mood disorder had a significantly lower %EWL than patients without psychiatric diagnosis at the 1-, 9-, and 12-month follow-up examinations. However, after removing patients with bipolar disorder from the analyses, no significant differences were found in the %EWL between patients with and without a lifetime history of depressive disorders.

Consistent with the laparoscopic Roux-en-Y gastric bypass findings, a lifetime history of mood disorders appears to be associated with significantly less weight loss in LSG patients. These findings highlight the importance of the psychiatric assessment in bariatric patients. Additionally, patients with a current or lifetime history of mood disorders might need additional pre- and postoperative care to improve their outcomes.