Impact of Antidepressant Use on Gastric Bypass Surgery Patients’ Weight Loss and Health-Related Quality-of-Life Outcomes

BackgroundPsychological factors may be predictive of post-surgical adjustment and successful outcomes in obesity-surgery populations.ObjectiveThe authors compared post–gastric bypass surgery (GBS) outcomes of patients being given active psychotropic treatment for depression, with those of patients without treatment or identifiable need for treatment at enrollment.MethodOutcome measures included weight and repeated administration of the Medical Outcome Survey Short Form–36 (SF–36).ResultsThere was no impact of antidepressant treatment on GBS patients’ weight loss or SF–36 outcomes.ConclusionTherefore, patients with actively treated depression should be expected to have GBS outcomes equivalent to those of patients without identifiable psychiatric illness or treatment.