Associations between Adolescent Preoperative Mental Health, Psychosocial Factors, and Body Mass Index

There is little research on adolescent bariatric surgery and mental health (depression, anxiety, etc.) with racial/ethnic minority adolescents. The objective of this study is to determine associations between adolescents’ preoperative reports of depression, anxiety, and self-esteem and caregiver’s’ reports of the caregiver-adolescent relationship and interpersonal relationships with adolescents’ BMI and differences based on race/ethnicity.

Adolescents (ages 12–21) who underwent metabolic and bariatric surgery from June 2020 to November 2022 had their responses to specific items on the BASC-3 (anxiety, depression, and self-esteem) analyzed for associations with their body mass index (BMI) and with caregiver responses to the BASC-3 for adolescents’ interpersonal skills and relationship with caregiver. Demographic differences on the BASC-3 were assessed. Pearson’s correlations, independent t-tests, and ANOVA were used.

Caregivers who had higher t-scores for relationship with their adolescents had adolescents who had lower depression t-scores, lower anxiety t-scores, and higher self-esteem t-scores. Parents who had higher t-scores for their adolescents’ interpersonal relations had adolescents who had lower depression t-scores, lower anxiety t-scores, and higher self-esteem t-scores. White adolescents had higher depression t-scores than Black and Hispanic adolescents. Black and Hispanic adolescents had higher self-esteem t-scores compared to White adolescents.

Some of the findings within the study regarding adolescents’ race and ethnicity and mental health are not consistent with prior research, affirming the need for additional research of these sub-populations.