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A Pilot Study of an Acceptance-Based Behavioral Intervention for Weight Regain After Bariatric Surgery

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Abstract

Background

Tens of thousands of bariatric surgery patients each year experience sub-optimal weight loss, significant regain, or both. Weight regain can contribute to a worsening of weight-related co-morbidities, and for some, leads to secondary surgical procedures. Poor weight outcomes have been associated with decreased compliance to the recommended postoperative diet. Decreased compliance may be partially due to a lack of psychological skills necessary to engage in healthy eating behaviors over the long term, especially as the effects of surgery (on appetite, hunger, and desire for food) decrease. Many behavioral interventions do not sufficiently address these challenges and often have limited effectiveness. The study aimed to evaluate the feasibility, acceptability, and preliminary effectiveness of a novel 10-week acceptance-based behavioral intervention to stop postoperative weight regain.

Methods

A sample of bariatric surgery patients (n = 11) who regained at least 10 % of their maximum lost postoperative weight was recruited. All participants received the intervention, which emphasized psychological skills thought to be integral to successful weight control post-surgery.

Results

The intervention was shown to be feasible and acceptable, with 72 % retention and high mean rating (4.25 out of 5.00) of program satisfaction among completers. Weight regain was stopped, and even reversed, with a mean total body weight loss of 3.58 ± 3.02 % throughout the 10-week intervention. There were also significant improvements in eating-related and acceptance-related variables.

Conclusions

These findings provide initial support for the use of a psychological acceptance-based intervention for weight regain in bariatric surgery patients.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Behavioral Sciences, Rush University Medical Center, Chicago, IL, USA

    Lauren E. Bradley

  2. Department of Psychology, Drexel University, Philadelphia, PA, USA

    Evan M. Forman, Stephanie G. Kerrigan, Meghan L. Butryn & James D. Herbert

  3. Center for Obesity Research and Education, Temple University, Philadelphia, PA, USA

    David B. Sarwer

Authors
  1. Lauren E. Bradley
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  2. Evan M. Forman
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  3. Stephanie G. Kerrigan
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  4. Meghan L. Butryn
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  5. James D. Herbert
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  6. David B. Sarwer
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Lauren E. Bradley.

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Conflict of Interest

D. B. Sarwer is a consultant for BAROnova, EnteroMedics, and Kythera and received consulting fees from these organizations during the time of the study. The remaining authors have no commercial associations that might be a conflict of interest in relation to this article.

Ethical Approval

All procedures performed in studies involving human participants were in accordance with the ethical standards of the institutional and/or national research committee and with the 1964 Helsinki Declaration and its later amendments or comparable ethical standards. The study was approved by the Institutional Review Boards of the University of Pennsylvania and Drexel University.

Informed Consent

Informed consent was obtained from all individual participants included in the study.

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Bradley, L.E., Forman, E.M., Kerrigan, S.G. et al. A Pilot Study of an Acceptance-Based Behavioral Intervention for Weight Regain After Bariatric Surgery. OBES SURG 26, 2433–2441 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11695-016-2125-0

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