Meeting physical activity recommendations is associated with health-related quality of life in women before and after Roux-en-Y gastric bypass surgery

Fanny Sellberg,Daniel Berglind,Per Tynelius,Sofie Possmark,Mikaela Willmer,Margareta Persson

doi:10.1007/s11136-019-02120-0

Abstract

PurposeMeeting physical activity (PA) recommendations is positively associated with health-related quality of life (HRQoL), but it is still unclear whether PA (specifically objectively measured) is associated with HRQoL in bariatric surgery candidates, both before and after surgery. Thus, the aim of this study was to examine the cross-sectional association between meeting objectively measured PA recommendations and HRQoL before and after Roux-en-Y gastric bypass (RYGB) surgery.MethodsSixty-six women undergoing RYGB with pre-surgery and 62 women with post-surgery valid PA and HRQoL data were included from the control group of a RCT study aiming at improving HRQoL and PA post-RYGB surgery. Measures before and 12 months after RYGB included the Short Form Health Survey (SF-36) and objectively measured PA, sedentary time (ST), and step counts with GT3X+ accelerometers. Multiple linear regression models were used to analyze the associations between PA and HRQoL.ResultsParticipants who engaged in more than 150 min of moderate to vigorous PA (MVPA)/week (PA recommendations) had considerably higher SF-36 scores (HRQoL) than those who did not, both pre and 12-month post-surgery, with greatest difference in the subscale bodily pain, 15.5 (p = 0.021) higher score (higher scores means less pain) pre-surgery and a 19.7 (p = 0.004) higher score post-surgery. Higher LPA and step counts and lower ST also showed positive associations in some of the subscales of SF-36.ConclusionsMeeting the PA recommendations and overall engaging in more PA was associated with higher HRQoL, pre-, and post-RYGB surgery, highlighting the importance of PA both pre- and post-surgery.

Highlights

Meeting the physical activity (PA) recommendations of at least 150 min of moderate to vigorous PA (MVPA) per week is associated with a wide range of positive health outcomes across all weight ranges, including reduced risk of heart disease, type 2 diabetes, some cancers, and improved mental health [1, 2]
Weight loss has been associated with increases in healthrelated quality of life (HRQoL) [11], especially rapid weight loss induced by bariatric surgery [12,13,14], where Roux-en-Y gastric bypass (RYGB) is the most commonly performed bariatric surgery procedure in Sweden [15]
The current study found a strong association between meeting guideline PA levels of at least 150 min of MVPA per week and higher HRQoL both pre- and 12-month postRYGB surgery

Summary

Introduction

Meeting the physical activity (PA) recommendations of at least 150 min of moderate to vigorous PA (MVPA) per week is associated with a wide range of positive health outcomes across all weight ranges, including reduced risk of heart disease, type 2 diabetes, some cancers, and improved mental health [1, 2]. Meeting the PA recommendations and higher duration, intensity, and bout length of PA are positively associated with healthrelated quality of life (HRQoL) [3,4,5]; a multidimensional measure of physical, mental, functional, and social wellbeing, in the general population [6]. Less is known about sedentary time (ST) and PA associations with HRQoL in individuals suffering from obesity [7, 8] and few studies have used objectively measured PA and ST [9]. Individuals suffering from obesity often show lower levels of HRQoL compared to the general normal weight population [10]. Greatest improvements of HRQoL, induced by weight loss, are often seen on the physical part of the measurement scale, probably caused by the reduced physical complaints after losing weight, but the mental part has been shown to improve [12, 13]

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