Assessing Sexual Abuse/Attack Histories with Bariatric Surgery Patients

Abstract

This study assessed sexual abuse/attack histories in 537 bariatric surgery patients using the PsyBari. The prevalence rates found were lower (15.5%, 19.3% of women, 5.2% of men) than other studies that used bariatric surgery patients but consistent with studies that used nonbariatric obese subjects. Furthermore, bariatric surgery patients who disclosed sexual abuse/attack were more likely to disclose physical abuse, psychological problems, psychological treatment, psychiatric medication, and psychiatric hospitalization. Among bariatric surgery patients who disclosed sexual abuse/attack, females were more likely to disclose suicidal ideation. A logistic regression found that for females, physical abuse and suicidal ideation reliably predicted abuse/attack status. For males, psychological problems, psychiatric medications, hospitalization, and suicidal ideation, reliably predicted abuse/attack status.

Keywords:

• psychological assessment
• bariatric surgery
• sexual abuse
• PsyBari

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Notes on contributors

David Mahony

David Mahony, Department of Psychiatry, Lutheran Medical Center, Brooklyn, New York.