Eating behaviors and weight outcomes in bariatric surgery patients amidst COVID-19

BACKGROUND: Recent studies suggest that eating habits are an area particularly affected by the lockdown imposed by many countries to curb the COVID-19 epidemic. Individuals that received bariatric surgery may represent a particularly susceptible population to the adverse effects of lockdown for its potential impact on eating, psychological, and weight loss outcomes. OBJECTIVES: This study seeks to investigate the incremental impact of COVID-19 lockdown on treatment outcomes of postbariatric patients in the risk period for weight regain. SETTING: Main hospital center. METHODS: This work uses data from an ongoing longitudinal study of bariatric patients assessed before surgery (T(0)), 1.5 years after sugery (T(1)), and 3 years after surgery (T(2)). Two independent groups were compared: the COVID-19_Group (n = 35) where T(0) and T(1) assessments were conducted before the pandemic started and T(2) assessment was conducted at the end of the mandatory COVID-19 lockdown; and the NonCOVID-19_Group (n = 66), covering patients who completed T(0), T(1), and T(2) assessments before the epidemic began. Assessment included self-report measures for disordered eating, negative urgency, depression, anxiety, stress, and weight outcomes. RESULTS: General linear models for repeated measures showed that the COVID-19_Group presented significantly higher weight concern (F = 8.403, P = .005, ƞ(2)(p) = .094), grazing behavior (F = 7.166, P = .009, ƞ(2)(p) = .076), and negative urgency (F = 4.522, P = .036, ƞ(2)(p) = .05) than the NonCOVID-19_Group. The COVID-19_Group also showed less total weight loss (F = 4.029, P = .05, ƞ(2)(p) = .04) and larger weight regain at T(2), with more COVID-19_Group participants experiencing excessive weight regain (20% versus 4.5%). CONCLUSION: These results show evidence for the impact of the coronavirus outbreak on eating-related psychopathology and weight outcomes in postbariatric surgery patients.