Integrating Obesity Treatment Into Routine Primary Care
Authors: Adam Gilden Tsai
Journal: Annals of Internal Medicine (2019)

Editorials3 December 2019Integrating Obesity Treatment Into Routine Primary CareAdam Gilden Tsai, MD, MSCEAdam Gilden Tsai, MD, MSCEUniversity of Colorado School of Medicine, Aurora, Colorado (A.G.T.)Search for more papers by this authorAuthor, Article, and Disclosure Informationhttps://doi.org/10.7326/M19-2988 SectionsAboutFull TextPDF ToolsAdd to favoritesDownload CitationsTrack CitationsPermissions ShareFacebookTwitterLinkedInRedditEmail Obesity is among the most common chronic diseases that U.S. primary care physicians see but is arguably the least commonly addressed during routine primary care (1). Many physicians are unfamiliar with the standards of care for treating obesity (2), in part because they are not tested on them (3). Clearly, physicians need better education, training, and tools to help manage obesity as they do other chronic conditions. As with other conditions that require intensive intervention, it is not necessarily the place of the internist to deliver such interventions themselves. Rather, a personalized recommendation for weight loss along with a referral ...References1. Kraschnewski JL, Sciamanna CN, Stuckey HL, et al. A silent response to the obesity epidemic: decline in US physician weight counseling. Med Care. 2013;51:186-92. [PMID: 23047128] doi:10.1097/MLR.0b013e3182726c33 CrossrefMedlineGoogle Scholar2. Turner M, Jannah N, Kahan S, et al. Current knowledge of obesity treatment guidelines by health care professionals. Obesity (Silver Spring). 2018;26:665-71. [PMID: 29570250] doi:10.1002/oby.22142 CrossrefMedlineGoogle Scholar3. Kushner RF, Butsch WS, Kahan S, et al. Obesity coverage on medical licensing examinations in the United States. What is being tested? Teach Learn Med. 2017;29:123-8. [PMID: 28033472] doi:10.1080/10401334.2016.1250641 CrossrefMedlineGoogle Scholar4. Bennett WL, Wang NY, Gudzune KA, et al. Satisfaction with primary care provider involvement is associated with greater weight loss: results from the practice-based POWER trial. Patient Educ Couns. 2015;98:1099-105. [PMID: 26026649] doi:10.1016/j.pec.2015.05.006 CrossrefMedlineGoogle Scholar5. Tsai AG, Bessesen DH. Obesity. Ann Intern Med. 2019;170:ITC33-ITC48. [PMID: 30831593]. doi:10.7326/AITC201903050 LinkGoogle Scholar6. Conroy MB, McTigue KM, Bryce CL, et al. Effect of electronic health record–based coaching on weight maintenance. A randomized trial. Ann Intern Med. 2019;171:777-84. doi:10.7326/M18-3337 LinkGoogle Scholar7. Jensen MD, Ryan DH, Apovian CM, et al; American College of Cardiology/American Heart Association Task Force on Practice Guidelines. 2013 AHA/ACC/TOS guideline for the management of overweight and obesity in adults: a report of the American College of Cardiology/American Heart Association Task Force on Practice Guidelines and The Obesity Society. J Am Coll Cardiol. 2014;63:2985-3023. [PMID: 24239920] doi:10.1016/j.jacc.2013.11.004 CrossrefMedlineGoogle Scholar8. Tsai AG. Why I treat obesity. Perm J. 2019;23. [PMID: 31167707] doi:10.7812/TPP/18-240 CrossrefMedlineGoogle Scholar Author, Article, and Disclosure InformationAffiliations: University of Colorado School of Medicine, Aurora, Colorado (A.G.T.)Disclosures: The author has disclosed no conflicts of interest. The form can be viewed at www.acponline.org/authors/icmje/ConflictOfInterestForms.do?msNum=M19-2988.Corresponding Author: Adam Gilden Tsai, MD, MSCE, Kaiser Permanente Colorado, Skyline Building, 3rd Floor Internal Medicine, 1375 East 20th Avenue, Denver, CO 80205; e-mail, adam.[email protected]org.This article was published at Annals.org on 12 November 2019. PreviousarticleNextarticle Advertisement FiguresReferencesRelatedDetailsSee AlsoEffect of Electronic Health Record–Based Coaching on Weight Maintenance Molly B. Conroy , Kathleen M. McTigue , Cindy L. Bryce , Dana Tudorascu , Bethany Barone Gibbs , Jonathan Arnold , Diane Comer , Rachel Hess , Kimberly Huber , Laurey R. Simkin-Silverman , and Gary S. Fischer Metrics 3 December 2019Volume 171, Issue 11Page: 847-848KeywordsBody mass indexElectronic medical recordsExerciseHypertensionMorbid obesityObesityPain managementPrimary care physiciansSmoking cessationWeight loss ePublished: 12 November 2019 Issue Published: 3 December 2019 Copyright & PermissionsCopyright © 2019 by American College of Physicians. All Rights Reserved.PDF downloadLoading ...