title: Recommendations for the presurgical psychosocial evaluation of bariatric surgery patients.
abstract: Psychosocial factors have significant potential to affect long-term outcomes of bariatric surgery, including emotional adjustment, adherence to the recommended postoperative lifestyle regimen, weight loss outcomes, and co-morbidity improvement and or resolution. Thus, it is recommended that bariatric behavioral health clinicians with specialized knowledge and experience be involved in the evaluation and care of patients both before and after surgery. The evaluating clinician plays a number of important roles in the multidisciplinary treatment of the bariatric patient. Central among these is the role of identifying factors that may pose challenges to optimal surgical outcome and providing recommendations to the patient and bariatric team on how to address these issues. This document outlines recommendations for the psychosocial evaluation of bariatric surgery patients, appropriate qualifications of those conducting these evaluations, communication of evaluation results and suggested treatment plan, and the extension of behavioral healthcare of the bariatric patient to the entire span of the surgical and postsurgical process.
authors.affiliation: Massachusetts General Hospital Weight Center, Boston, Massachusetts; Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts. Electronic address: ssogg@partners.org.
authors.forename: Stephanie
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Sogg
authors.affiliation: UMass Memorial Weight Center, Worcester, Massachusetts; University of Massachusetts Medical School, Worcester, Massachusetts.
authors.forename: Jennifer
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Lauretti
authors.affiliation: UC Health Weight Loss Center, West Chester, Ohio; University of Cincinnati College of Medicine, Cincinnati, Ohio.
authors.forename: Lisa
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: West-Smith
mesh_terms: D050110:Bariatric Surgery / Q000523:psychology*; D057215:Body Dysmorphic Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis; D003071:Cognition / Q000502:physiology; D032921:Consensus; D015444:Exercise / Q000502:physiology; D005192:Family Health; D001068:Feeding and Eating Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis; D007722:Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice; D006304:Health Status; D006801:Humans; D008487:Medical History Taking / Q000379:methods; D055118:Medication Adherence; D001523:Mental Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000628:therapy; D009042:Motivation; D009767:Obesity, Morbid / Q000523:psychology* / Q000601:surgery; D010551:Personality; D010552:Personality Assessment; D017410:Practice Guidelines as Topic; D011300:Preoperative Care / Q000379:methods; D011594:Psychometrics; D011788:Quality of Life; D016540:Smoking Cessation; D000074606:Smoking Prevention; D012944:Social Support; D013315:Stress, Psychological / Q000209:etiology; D059020:Suicidal Ideation; D015431:Weight Loss
keywords: Assessment; Bariatric surgery; Behavioral; Clinical practice guidelines; Evaluation; Obesity; Psychological; Social support; Weight loss surgery