Extreme obesity is associated with significant health issues as well as substantial psychosocial burden for many individuals. Numerous studies have documented the impairments in quality of life associated with extreme obesity. Sexual behavior and functioning is an important aspect of quality of life but is frequently overlooked in research studies as well as clinical care. This paper focuses on the quality of life and sexual functioning of obese individuals with specific focus on the changes in these domains following the substantial weight losses seen after bariatric surgery.

The MMPI-2-RF can aid in identifying a broad range of psychological comorbidity among bariatric surgery candidates. When used in conjunction with a pre-surgical psychological interview, it can aid in the assessment of psychological factors relevant to pre-surgical psychological assessment of bariatric surgery candidates.

Bariatric surgery is a viable treatment option for patients with extreme obesity and associated medical comorbidities; however, optimal surgical outcomes are not universal. Surgical societies, such as the American Society for Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery (ASMBS), recommend that patients undergo a presurgical psychological evaluation that includes reviewing patients' medical charts, conducting a comprehensive clinical interview, and employing some form of objective psychometric testing. Despite numerous societies recommending the inclusion of self-report assessments, only about 2/3 of clinics actively use psychological testing-some of which have limited empirical support to justify their use. This review aims to critically evaluate the psychometric properties of self-report measures when used in bariatric surgery settings and provide recommendations to help guide clinicians in selecting instruments to use in bariatric surgery evaluations. Recommended assessment batteries include use of a broadband instrument along with a narrowband eating measure. Suggestions for self-report measures to include in a presurgical psychological evaluation in bariatric surgery settings are also provided. (PsycINFO Database Record

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