Assessing Psychosocial Functioning Of Bariatric Surgery Candidates With The Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory 2 Restructured Form

Introduction: Psychological comorbidity is common in bariatric surgery candidates. Many multidisciplinary teams incorporate psychometric testing to screen for psychological factors that, if left unattended, may negatively impact surgical results. Purpose: Report descriptive findings and empirical correlates of Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory-2 Restructured Form (MMPI-2-RF) scales among bariatric surgery candidates undergoing a pre-surgical psychological evaluation. Materials and Methods: The sample consisted of male (n = 324) and female (n = 658) patients seeking bariatric surgery who were administered the MMPI-2-RF at their psychological evaluation. Psychosocial and medical variables were retrospectively coded from the patients medical records. These criteria included history/current mental health diagnoses and treatments, maladaptive eating behaviors/diagnoses, past/current substance use, abuse history, sleep apnea, and denial of surgery. Results: Descriptive analyses demonstrated similar findings for male and female candidates and replicated previous reports. MMPI-2-RF scales measuring emotional dysfunction were associated with maladaptive eating patterns, a history of Major Depressive Disorder, and previous suicide attempts. Scale scores measuring behavioral dysfunction were associated with current/past substance use and previous physical abuse. MMPI-2-RF scale scores measuring somatic problems were associated with a higher BMI at the time of surgery, sleep apnea diagnosis/adherence, physical/sexual abuse history, active mood disorder, previous mental health diagnoses, and maladaptive eating patterns. Conclusions: The MMPI-2-RF can aid in identifying a broad range of psychological co-morbidity among bariatric surgery candidates. When used in conjunction with a pre-surgical psychological interview, it can aid in the assessment of psychological factors relevant to pre-surgical psychological assessment of bariatric surgery candidates.