BACKGROUND: Health-related quality of life (HRQoL) peaks around 1 year after Roux-en-Y gastric bypass (RYGB) surgery, and thereafter, in many patients, slowly deteriorates.

OBJECTIVES: The aim of the present study was to test early effects (study endpoint 2 years) of a dissonance-based group intervention on HRQoL (primary outcome) and wellbeing among women who underwent RYGB: a 1-year follow-up of the WELL-GBP trial.

SETTING: Women were recruited from 5 different hospitals in Sweden pre-RYGB surgery. Participants were randomized to intervention or a control group (regular care).

METHODS: The intervention consisted of 4 group sessions, 2 to 3 months post-surgery, comprising the following 4 different topics: (1) physical activity, (2) eating behavior, (3) social relationships, and (4) intimate relationships. Participants answered questionnaires about HRQoL (SF-36, Short-Form Health Survey), social adjustment, body esteem, eating behavior, and wore an accelerometer for 7 days at pre- and 1 year post-RYGB.

RESULTS: Two hundred fifty-nine women were recruited and 203 (78%) completed 1-year follow-up measurements. Mean body mass index pre-surgery was 40.8 (standard deviation = 4.5), mean age 44.7 (standard deviation = 10.3) years, and 61 of 120 women in the intervention group received the intervention according to protocol (≥3 group sessions). We observed no difference between the intervention and the control group at 1-year post-RYGB surgery. All scales improved in both groups from pre- to 1 year post-surgery.

CONCLUSIONS: We did not observe any 1-year early effects on HRQoL from a dissonance-based group intervention among female RYGB patients. Future studies may investigate long-term effects of the intervention.