Psychological Correlates of Laparoscopic Adjustable Gastric Band and Gastric Bypass Patients

To compare psychological characteristics of patients seeking laparoscopic adjustable gastric band (LAGB) and gastric bypass surgery. In the present study, 898 women were assessed as part of a comprehensive presurgical evaluation. Of these 898 patients, 107 (12%) were seeking LAGB surgery and 791 (88%) were seeking gastric bypass surgery. Their scores on a battery of psychological tests were compared with T-tests with Bonferroni correction. Those patients seeking gastric bypass had greater body mass indices than those seeking LAGB. However, the analyses found no statistically significant differences on measures of IQ, depression, anxiety, anger, self-assessed reasons for weight gain, and psychopathology and personality as indicated by Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory-2 scale scores. The psychological evaluation can be helpful in identifying behavioral and emotional issues that merit adjunct psychological attention to optimize long-term surgical outcome. These results suggest that, as a group, no differential treatment planning needs to take place for psychological issues based on surgery performed.