One-year follow-up of a dissonance-based intervention on quality of life, wellbeing and physical activity after Roux-en-Y Gastric Bypass surgery: a randomized controlled trial

Abstract Background Health related quality of life (HRQoL) peaks around one year after Roux-en-Y Gastric Bypass (RYGB) surgery and thereafter, in many patients, slowly deteriorates. Objectives The aim of the current study was to test early effects (study end point 2 years) of a dissonance-based group intervention on HRQoL (primary outcome) and wellbeing among women operated with RYGB: a one-year follow-up of the WELL-GBP trial. Setting Women were recruited from five different hospitals in Sweden pre-RYGB surgery. Participants were randomized to intervention or control group (regular care). Methods The intervention consisted of four group sessions, two to three months post-surgery, comprising four different topics: (i) physical activity, (ii) eating behavior, (iii) social relationships and (iv) intimate relationships. Participants answered questionnaires about HRQoL (SF-36), social adjustment (SAS), body-esteem (BES), eating behavior (TFEQ and DEBS) and wore an accelerometer (GT3X+) for seven days at pre- and one-year post-RYGB. Results Two hundred and fifty-nine women were recruited and 203 (78%) completed one-year follow-up measurements. Mean body mass index (BMI) pre-surgery was 40.8 (SD=4.5), mean age 44.7 (SD=10.3) years and 61 of 120 women in the intervention group received the intervention according to protocol (≥3 group sessions). We observed no difference between the intervention and the control group at one-year post-RYGB surgery. All scales improved in both groups from pre- to one-year post-surgery. Conclusions We did not observe any one-year early effects on HRQoL from a dissonance-based group intervention among female RYGB patients. Future studies may investigate long-term effects of the intervention.