An Exploration of the Outcomes of Gastric Bypass Surgery for Morbid Obesity: Patient Characteristics and Indices of Success

The search for replicable predictors of the outcomes of surgical intervention for obesity has proven challenging, with patient selection being a recurrent theme in bariatric literature. In this study, 20 gastric bypass patients were interviewed at an average of 2 years following surgery. Subjects provided extensive data relating to their characteristics and experiences. Statistical analyses were undertaken to establish likely predictors of success, both in terms of percentage of excess weight lost and in broader terms. It was found that self-esteem, some scales of the Adjective Checklist, and valuing of food and eating related to a successful outcome. Recommendations are made regarding an interview schedule for pre-operative assessment, and a prospective study to evaluate its predictive power is proposed.