BARIATRIC SURGERY: PSYCHOLOGICAL ISSUES AND LONG-TERM FOLLOW-UP
Bariatric surgery, often considered an effective solution to combat severe obesity, involves much more than a simple surgical procedure. It requires multidisciplinary care including rigorous psychological monitoring to ensure the long-term success of the operation.
Preoperative Psychological Preparation
Before the operation, a thorough psychological assessment is essential. This assessment aims to identify psychological or psychiatric disorders that could compromise the success of the surgery. Patients must be mentally prepared for changes in their postoperative lifestyle. Recommendations include:
- Assessment of mood and anxiety disorders: Depressive and anxiety disorders must be identified and treated before the operation.
- Identification of eating disorders: Disorders such as binge eating disorder must be stabilized to avoid postoperative complications and reduced effectiveness of the procedure.
- Stress management preparation: Stress management techniques and coping strategies are taught to help patients cope with postoperative challenges.
Postoperative Psychological Follow-up
Psychological follow-up after surgery is equally crucial. It helps prevent relapses and maintain the obtained results. Key aspects of follow-up include:
- Ongoing support: Regular consultations with psychologists or psychiatrists to monitor the patient's mental state and intervene if necessary.
- Support groups: Participating in support groups allows patients to share their experiences and find comfort in others who have been through similar situations.
- Behavioral therapies: Cognitive behavioral therapies can help modify eating behaviors and adopt a healthy lifestyle.
Issues of Eating Disorders
Eating disorders are often present in obese patients and can persist after surgery. They represent a major challenge to the surgery's success. Issues include:
- Risk of relapse: Without adequate follow-up, patients can return to their old eating habits, leading to weight regain.
- Impact on mental health: Untreated eating disorders can exacerbate mood and anxiety disorders, affecting the patient's quality of life.
Importance of Long-Term Follow-up
Long-term follow-up is essential to ensure the success of bariatric surgery. It enables one to:
- Monitor progress: Regularly assessing the patient's weight loss and general health.
- Adapt treatments: Adjusting psychological and medical care according to the patient's evolving needs.
- Preventing complications: Early identification and treatment of physical or psychological complications.
- Lose weight in the absence of nutritional imbalance (proteins, vitamins, blood sugar, etc.), which could cause the body to trigger hormonal mechanisms to reverse weight loss.
While bariatric surgery should not be seen as a miracle solution, it can help you achieve goals that will change your quality of life, provided that a long term multidisciplinary follow up is set up along with it including psychological support.
See also: Postoperative Follow-up
♦ To contact and make an appointment with Dr. Bruto Randone, Visceral Digestive and Bariatric Surgeon at the Clinique Internationale du Parc Monceau, 21 Rue de Chazelles, 75017 Paris, France, or at the Clinique Bizet, 23 Rue Georges Bizet, 75116 Paris, France, click on Contact