[Pregastroplasty psychological assessment at the CHU of Liege using the BIPASS]. / Le bilan psychologique prégastroplastie au CHU de Liège inspiré du BIPASS.

Obesity is a chronic disease that has become a major public health problem with a prevalence that has doubled in the past two decades in most industrialized and developing countries. Currently, bariatric surgery represents the most effective treatment for extreme or severe overweight (BMI ? 40 kg/m² or ? 35 kg/m2 with weight-related comorbidities). Pre-operative bariatric surgery psychiatric and psychological assessment is essential for various reasons. In addition to the selection of candidates for the operation, its objectives are to prepare patients for future postoperative changes as well as to optimize their psychological and psychiatric care. This article describes a standardized tool, the BIPASS (Bariatric Interprofessional Psychosocial Assessment Suitability Scale), which allows a quality assessment in the field.

L'obésité est une maladie chronique devenue un problème de santé publique majeur, avec une prévalence qui a doublé au cours des deux dernières décennies dans la majaorité des pays industrialisés et en voie de développement. Actuellement, la chirurgie bariatrique représente le traitement le plus efficace afin de remédier à cette problématique de surcharge pondérale sévère (IMC ? 40 ou ? 35 kg/m² avec complications). L'évaluation psychiatrique et psychologique préopératoire dans le cadre d'une chirurgie bariatrique s'impose pour divers enjeux. Outre la sélection des candidats à l'opération, ses objectifs sont, notamment, de préparer au mieux les patients aux changements futurs postopératoires ainsi que d'optimiser leur prise en charge psychologique et, éventuellement, psychiatrique. Cet article décrit un outil standardisé, le BIPASS (Bariatric Interprofessional Psychosocial Assessment Suitability Scale), qui permet une évaluation de qualité dans le domaine.

Memories of near-death experiences: are they self-defining?

Some people report memories of near-death experiences (NDEs) after facing situations of impending death and these memories appear to have significant consequences on their lives (here referred to as "real NDE experiencers"; real NDErs). We assessed to what extent NDE memories are considered self-defining: memories that help people to define clearly how they see themselves. We screened 71 participants using the Greyson NDE scale (48 real NDErs and 23 NDErs-like who had lived a similar experience in absence of a threat to their life). Participants described their two main self-defining memories (SDMs). For each SDM, they completed the Centrality of Event Scale (CES) to assess how central the event is to their identity. The two subgroups did not differ regarding the proportion of NDErs who recalled their NDE (30 real NDErs out of 48 and 11 NDErs-like out of 23). Real NDErs and NDErs-like who recalled their NDE (n = 41) reported richer experiences as assessed by the Greyson NDE scale. Furthermore, these participants rated their NDE memory as more central to their identity as compared to other SDMs, and the richness of the NDE memory was positively associated to its centrality (CES scores). Overall, these findings suggest that the self-defining aspect of the experience might be related to its phenomenological content rather than its circumstances of occurrence. The self-defining status of NDE memories confirms that they constitute an important part of NDErs' personal identity and highlights the importance for clinicians to facilitate their integration within the self.