Health-Related Quality of Life Before and After Bariatric Surgery

Abstract

Over recent years it has become increasingly clear that health related quality of life (HRQoL) is an important outcome for assessing the effectiveness of bariatric surgery. HRQoL can be measured using uni dimensional tools to assess factors such as mobility, mood, self esteem or eating behavior or multidimensional tools which assess health status in the broadest sense. This chapter will present these different measurement tools and describe their use across a range of studies in the context of bariatric surgery. It will then evaluate the pros and cons of each tool and consider the issues relevant for identifying the best tool for any given situation. Finally, the chapter will conclude that there is no one measure of HRQoL that meets all research or clinical needs for bariatric surgery and that the choice of measure should take into account the defi nition of HRQoL being used, the function of the measure being used and the practicalities of the data collection process. Keywords Health related quality of life • Bariatric surgery • Health status • Outcomes • Assessment tools