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Updated: Jun 5, 2026

Roux-en-Y Gastric Bypass Operation in Rats
Published on: June 11, 2012
Antidepressant drug therapy does not affect weight loss one year after gastric bypass surgery
Margaret Malone1, Sharon A Alger-Mayer, John M Polimeni
1Department of Pharmacy Practice, Albany College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences, Albany, NY 12208-3492, USA. margaret.malone@acphs.edu
Background:
Preliminary data suggest that patients with actively treated depression should expect the same outcomes after surgery. The objective of this study was to compare weight loss 12 months after gastric bypass surgery in patients taking antidepressants before surgery (AD) versus those who were not (non-AD).
Methods:
IRB approval was obtained. All patients gave informed consent prior to participating in the study. Medication and weight loss histories were retrospectively reviewed in adult patients who were followed at 12 months post-surgery.
Results:
145 of 364 patients were taking antidepressants at baseline. There was no significant difference in weight loss between the AD and non-AD groups at 12 months (p > 0.05).
Conclusions:
Taking antidepressant medication prior to gastric bypass surgery did not affect weight loss outcomes at 12 months.
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