Prospective Monitoring of Small Intestinal Bacterial Overgrowth After Gastric Bypass: Clinical, Biological, and Gas Chromatographic Aspects.

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: Obesity is a predisposing factor for small intestinal bacterial overgrowth (SIBO). The aim of this study was to prospectively evaluate the prevalence of SIBO as well as its clinical, biological, and nutritional aspects before and up to 24 months after a Roux-en-Y gastric bypass (RYGB) surgery. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Fifty-one patients (mean BMI 46.9 kg/m2, 66.7% women) requesting RYGB were included between 2016 and 2020. Each patient underwent a glucose breath test, a standardized interrogation on functional digestive signs, a dietary survey, a blood test, a fecalogram, and anthropometric data gathering. These investigations were carried out before surgery and at 1, 3, 6, 9, 12, 18, and 24 months after RYGB. RESULTS: Before surgery, we found a prevalence of 17.6% of SIBO (95% CI = [8.9%; 31.4%]). After RYGB, at the end of 24 months of follow-up, 89.5% of patients developed SIBO. Anal incontinence appeared to be very frequent after surgery, affecting 18.8% of our population 18 months after surgery. We observed positive steatorrhea after surgery with an average of 11.1 g of lipids/24 h despite a significant limitation of dietary lipids (p = 0.0282). CONCLUSION: Our study corroborates data in the literature on the prevalence of SIBO in severe obesity patients. For the first time, we observed the sudden appearance of SIBO after RYGB, with a correlation between exhaled hydrogen on a breath test and lipid malabsorption on the fecalogram. As a result, these patients develop fatty diarrhea, with frequent fecal incontinence.

Psychological characteristics of patients seeking bariatric treatment versus those seeking medical treatment for obesity: is bariatric surgery a last best hope?

PURPOSE: Bariatric surgery (BS) is considered the most effective treatment for severe obesity. Nevertheless, long-term studies have identified some concerning issues, such as increased postoperative rates of suicide and substance use disorders. Some investigators have postulated that these postoperative issues might result from differences in psychological characteristics between patients with obesity seeking BS and those seeking non-surgical (medical) care. The aim of this study was to explore the psychological differences between patients seeking BS and those seeking non-surgical care. METHODS: 151 patients seeking BS (BS group) and 95 patients seeking medical care (non-surgery group) completed questionnaires measuring depression, anxiety, self-esteem, body dissatisfaction, hopelessness and weight-loss expectations (WLE). RESULTS: There were no differences between the BS and non-surgery groups in depression, anxiety or self-esteem. Body dissatisfaction and WLE were greater in the BS group than in the non-surgery group. Contrary to our hypothesis, the non-surgery group showed higher levels of hopelessness than the BS group. Correlation analyses revealed very similar associations between psychological characteristics for both groups. Hierarchical regression and moderation analyses identified self-esteem as the factor most predictive of hopelessness in both groups. CONCLUSIONS: We found few differences in psychological characteristics between groups. The lower level of hopelessness in the BS group might be seen as a form of protection leading up to surgery but may result from the patient's view of BS as their "last best hope". Further studies are needed to understand the evolution of these psychological characteristics after surgery and their possible effects on postoperative outcomes. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: Level III, case-control analytic studies.

"I Want to Lose Weight and it Has to Be Fair": Predictors of Satisfaction After Bariatric Surgery.

PURPOSE: Bariatric surgery (BS) is the most effective technique used to help patients with obesity achieve long-term weight loss. Although many patients report high levels of postoperative satisfaction after BS, some remain unsatisfied with their outcome. Studies of factors that predict postoperative satisfaction have yielded varying results. Weight loss has been identified as a predictor of satisfaction after BS, but debate remains concerning the impact of preoperative expectations and psychological variables. Furthermore, the relevance of attribution and perception of equity to postoperative satisfaction has not been evaluated in patients undergoing BS. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We assessed preoperative expectations and the levels of body dissatisfaction, anxiety, and depression in 80 patients undergoing BS. Satisfaction, attribution, feeling of equity, and psychological variables were evaluated 6 months, 1 year, and 2 years after BS. RESULTS: Weight loss and equity were the two predictors of satisfaction 6 months after BS. Body dissatisfaction was the main factor predicting satisfaction 1 year after BS, with equity and anxiety having smaller influences. Weight loss and equity were the factors predicting satisfaction 2 years after BS. CONCLUSION: Our findings support previous results concerning the influence of weight loss on satisfaction after BS. The identification of equity as a factor associated with postoperative satisfaction raises questions regarding the impact of the comparisons made by the patient with others and the consequences of the messages they receive about BS. Moreover, our results underscore the importance of considering the patient's personal experience after BS and not just their weight loss.

Perseverative Thinking Questionnaire (PTQ): French Validation of a Transdiagnostic Measure of Repetitive Negative Thinking.

Repetitive negative thinking (RNT) is a transdiagnostic process involved in the onset and maintenance of many psychological disorders. The Perseverative Thinking Questionnaire (Ehring et al., 2011) is a content-independent scale composed of 15 items that assesses RNT from a transdiagnostic perspective in both clinical and general populations. The aim of the current research was to translate and validate the French version of the PTQ through two studies (total N = 1016) following the steps for the trans-cultural validation of psychometric instruments (Hambleton et al., 2006). An exploratory factor analysis conducted on a first community sample revealed a latent structure composed of 10 items distributed on one common factor, labeled RNT, and three subfactors that evaluated the repetitive characteristic of RNT, the intrusiveness of RNT and the effect of RNT on mental resources. This factorial structure was confirmed in two confirmatory factor analyses in community and clinical samples. Scale score reliability indices were good and confirmed the validity of the instrument. The French version of the PTQ is a good content-independent instrument to assess RNT in general and clinical populations of French speakers.