Obesity is often cited as a significant contributor to a country’s healthcare burden because it increases the risk for comorbidities, including hypertension and diabetes. For this reason, clear and consistent guidelines for the diagnosis and management of obesity as well as being overweight need to be accessible to healthcare practitioners.
Judi Porter, PhD, FdA, and colleagues are updating the Clinical Practice Guidelines for the Management of Overweight and Obesity for Adults, Adolescents, and Children, so they undertook a scoping review of obesity and overweight practice management guidelines internationally. They published their findings in Obesity Reviews.
Physician’s Weekly (PW) spoke with Dr. Porter regarding the revelations uncovered during the review process and how providers can apply these findings to clinical practice.
PW: What are the most important findings from your review?
Dr. Porter: Some of the most important findings of the review involve how many inconsistencies exist. Clinical practice guidelines internationally are inconsistent, particularly in their relevance for specific groups. For example, there are few specific guidelines for people with mental health conditions and only one guideline that includes a focus on people with disabilities. Where guidelines do not target specific groups, clinicians would be guided to follow the age-appropriate advice for the person living with overweight or obesity. Still, this advice may not necessarily consider the challenges some groups face. (Figure) Another important finding was that there are some emerging areas of practice, such as the use of pharmacological treatments that are yet to be fully integrated into clinical practice guidelines. This is why regular updates of clinical practice guidelines are needed.
How can these findings be incorporated into practice?
It’s important that clinicians follow the same clinical guidelines that are relevant for their patients; otherwise, the care being provided may be inconsistent based on the clinician’s interpretation of evidence. The development and use of clinical practice guidelines supports this consistent process.
What makes this issue particularly urgent in the healthcare landscape?
The prevalence of people living with over weight and obesity internationally is high, and this brings increased risk of chronic diseases and burden. Using clinical practice guidelines means that care is guided by the best evidence and within the constraints of the health system covered by the guidelines.
What still needs to be explored?
There is so much more research that needs to be conducted in overweight and obesity. In particular, the changes in treatment approaches that occur with pharmacological treatments and how this translates to changes in healthcare delivery.
Is there anything else you feel PW readers would benefit from knowing about your research?
We anticipate that our revised Clinical Practice Guidelines for the Management of Overweight and Obesity for Adults, Adolescents, and Children in Australia will be published late in 2024. There will be several other research outputs that may arise from our reviews to inform these guidelines.
