Obesity: pathophysiology and practical management

Patient characteristics related to intensity of weight reduction care in a university medical clinic

OBJECTIVE

To identify patient characteristics related to intensity of weight reduction care provided in a primary care practice.

DESIGN

Cross-sectional study linking data from a patient survey and data from medical records.

SETTING

Internal medicine housestaff clinic in an urban university hospital.

PARTICIPANTS

321 outpatients who represented a systematic sample of all outpatients who had visited the clinic over one year.

MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS

The patient population was largely black (86%) and female (65%). Most patients (54%) were overweight [body-mass index (BMI) > 85th percentile for the United States by gender]. Intensity of care was defined by a composite scale: points were awarded for actions documented in the medical chart or recalled by the patient. Factors independently associated with a higher intensity of care among the 161 overweight patients were: BMI [odds ratio (OR) = 1.13 per kg/m2; 95% confidence interval (95% CI) = 1.04, 122; p = 0.002], the patient's self-perception of being overweight (OR = 5.37; 95% CI = 1.99, 14.46; p = 0.001), and age of 64 years or younger (OR = 2.48; 95% CI = 1.12, 5.48; p = 0.02). Race, gender, and presence of hypertension or hypercholesterolemia were not associated with greater intensity of care.

CONCLUSIONS

Patients with hypertension and hypercholesterolemia may be receiving suboptimal weight reduction care. Heightened awareness of being overweight may enhance the provision of weight reduction care. Prospective studies are required to confirm these findings.

Weight loss counseling in primary care

Caring for the overweight client requires a multifaceted approach. The nurse practitioner can help clients lose weight by providing them with strategies for reducing calorie intake, maintaining a healthy, balanced diet, exercising more, and developing positive behavioral and attitudinal changes. Weight reduction programs need to be individualized and clients should be periodically reassessed for changes in behaviors, eating patterns, and goals. Success in weight loss and maintenance requires a lifelong commitment to behavioral and nutritional changes. The goal of this article is to improve the clinician's understanding of the overweight person and to assist health care providers in counseling clients in weight reduction and maintenance.