Health Literacy and Weight Loss After Bariatric Surgery

• Published in: Obesity surgery Vol. 29; no. 12; pp. 3948 - 3953
• Main Authors: Erdogdu, Umut Eren, Cayci, Haci Murat, Tardu, Ali, Demirci, Hakan, Kisakol, Gurcan, Guclu, Metin
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: New York Springer US 01-12-2019; Springer Nature B.V
• Subjects: Adolescent; Adult; Body mass index; Female; Follow-Up Studies; Gastrectomy - methods; Gastrointestinal surgery; Health education; Health literacy; Health Literacy - statistics & numerical data; Health promotion; Humans; Laparoscopy; Male; Medicine; Medicine & Public Health; Middle Aged; Obesity; Obesity, Morbid - surgery; Original Contributions; Prospective Studies; Surgery; Treatment Outcome; Weight Loss; Young Adult; Health literacy; HLS-EU-Q47; Morbid obesity; Bariatric surgery; Weight loss; Sleeve gastrectomy
• ISSN: 0960-8923; 1708-0428
• DOI: 10.1007/s11695-019-04060-7

Background
There are many factors that affect weight loss after bariatric surgery. The present study evaluated the impact of health literacy on weight loss after bariatric surgery in morbidly obese patients.
Methods
The data of 118 patients who underwent laparoscopic sleeve gastrectomy for morbid obesity (body mass index-BMI ≥ 40 kg/m
2
) and completed a 1-year follow-up period were recorded and evaluated, prospectively. The Turkish version of the 47-item European Health Literacy Survey Questionnaire (HLS-EU-Q47) was used to evaluate the health literacy of these patients. Their demographic characteristics, preoperative and postoperative weight (at 6 and 12 months), BMI, the percentage of excess weight loss (% EWL), excess BMI loss (% EBL) and total weight loss (%TWL), comorbidities, socioeconomic characteristics (marital status, income level, educational status, and duration), and HLS-EU-Q47 results were recorded and compared.
Results
A significant inverse relationship was identified between preoperative BMI and scores for health promotion health literacy and general health literacy indexes (
p
 = 0.024 and
p
 = 0.032, respectively). A significant positive relationship was noted between % EWL and % EBL at 6 and 12 months, and health promotion health literacy index scores (6 months:
p
 = 0.004,
p
 = 0.006; 12 months:
p
 < 0.001 and
p
 < 0.001, respectively). A similar significant positive relationship was recorded between the % EWL and % EBL at 12 months and the health care health literacy index scores (
p
 = 0.042 and
p
 = 0.036, respectively). There was also a significant positive relationship between general health literacy index scores and % EWL and % EBL at 12 months (
p
 = 0.022 and
p
 = 0.021, respectively). % EWL at 12 months increased by 0.39, with a 1-point increase in health promotion and health literacy index scores.
Conclusions
A high health literacy index score in morbidly obese patients is associated with successful weight loss after bariatric surgery.