title: Health-related quality of life in patients seeking gastric bypass surgery vs non-treatment-seeking controls.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Previous research has found that health-related quality of life (HRQOL) differs among obese individuals depending on treatment-seeking status, with greater impairments found in obese individuals seeking treatments of greatest intensity. The goals of this study were to determine: 1) if there are differences in obesity-specific HRQOL between seekers of gastric bypass surgery and non-treatment-seeking controls; and, 2) if the presence and number of co-morbid conditions impacts on HRQOL.
  
  
  METHODS
  Participants were 339 surgical cases (mean age 42.9, mean BMI 47.7, 85.5% women) and 87 controls (mean age 48.8, mean BMI 43.5, 71.3% women). Obesity-specific HRQOL was assessed using the Impact of Weight on Quality of Life-Lite (IWQOL-Lite). Subjects were given a detailed medical history to determine the presence of co-morbid conditions.
  
  
  RESULTS
  After controlling for BMI, age, and gender, obesity-specific HRQOL was significantly more impaired (P<.001) in the surgery-seeking group than in the control group on all 5 scales and total score of the IWQOL-Lite. For total score, physical function and sexual life, there was increasing impairment with increasing number of co-morbid conditions. Treatment-seeking status, BMI, gender, and the presence of depression accounted for most of the variance in IWQOL-Lite total score.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Persons seeking gastric bypass expe rience poorer HRQOL than non-treatment-seeking individuals after controlling for BMI, age, and gender. The presence of co-morbid conditions contributes to some aspects of HRQOL impairment.
authors.affiliation: Obesity and Quality of Life Consulting, Durham, NC 27707, USA. rkolotkin@yahoo.com
authors.forename: Ronette L
authors.initials: RL
authors.lastname: Kolotkin
authors.forename: Ross D
authors.initials: RD
authors.lastname: Crosby
authors.forename: Robert
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Pendleton
authors.forename: Michael
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Strong
authors.forename: Richard E
authors.initials: RE
authors.lastname: Gress
authors.forename: Ted
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Adams
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001294:Attitude to Health; D015992:Body Mass Index; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D015390:Gastric Bypass / Q000379:methods* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D006801:Humans; D016014:Linear Models; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009767:Obesity, Morbid / Q000601:surgery*; D017060:Patient Satisfaction; D011788:Quality of Life; D012016:Reference Values; D018570:Risk Assessment; D012649:Self Concept; D018709:Statistics, Nonparametric; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D016896:Treatment Outcome; D014481:United States; D015431:Weight Loss