Eating Disorders and bariatric surgery

Many studies have shown that patients with severe obesity who are candidates for bariatric surgery are frequently affected by eating disorders which can persist even after surgery. Furthermore, bariatric patients can develop EDs and dysfunctional eating behaviours in the post-bariatric phase: EDs (BED, AN, BN, NES), LOC, grazing, picking, emotional eating, craving and sweet eating. The presence of eating disorders and dysfunctional eating behaviours may influence the outcomes in terms of weight loss and metabolic parameters. After the description of an illustrative clinical case of a patient with pre-surgical BED and post-surgical BN, the need for a multidisciplinary and structured diagnostic-therapeutic programme for the bariatric patient is discussed in order to prevent or treat feeding and eating disorders. The importance of a multidisciplinary team (physician, dietician, psychotherapist, psychiatrist) is also highlighted in the management and treatment of these patients.