Bariatric surgery significantly improves the quality of sexual life and self-esteem in morbidly obese women

Background: The impact of bariatric surgery (BS) on the sexual functioning of patients is poorly studied. Our aim was to analyze the sexual function, depressive symptoms, and self-esteem of morbidly obese women (MOW) undergoing BS. Patients and methods: Quality of sexual life was prospectively 5 evaluated in 43 consecutive MOW (18–50 years) who underwent BS. Female sexual function index (FSFI), Beck depression inventory (BDI), and Rosenberg self-esteem scale (RSES) questionnaires were administered to evaluate sexual satisfaction, depressive symptoms, and self-esteem, respectively. A control group of 36 healthy, non-obese, female patients (HW) was recruited for comparison. Results of questionnaires were compared between three periods (before BS and at 3- and 6-months follow-up) and between MOW and HW. Results: Before BS, the FSFI score was significantly lower in MOW compared to HW (17±12 vs 27±8, p=0.0001) while at 3 and 6-months post-BS a significant amelioration (p=0.01) occurred. In particular, after BS, all components of the FSFI score (sexual desire, excitement, lubrification, orgasm, satisfaction, and pain) were ameliorated. The pre-BS BDI score was higher in MOW than in HW (8±6 vs 5±5, p=0.004) while at postoperative months 3 and 6, a significant amelioration was found (p=0.025 and 0.005, respectively). Before BS, no significant differences occurred in the RSES score between MOW and HW (30±7 vs 32±6, p=0.014), whereas the MOW RSES scores at 6-months post-BS were improved when compared with the HW RSES scores. Conclusions: BS results in a significant improvement in the quality of sexual life, depressive symptoms, and self-esteem in MOW.