Assessment of the Obese Patient

In the 2003 article, Kushner and Roth addressed the critical issue of obesity, which affected over 60% of adults and 15% of adolescents at the time, contributing to around 300,000 preventable deaths annually. They pointed out the low rates of obesity detection and counseling by physicians, attributing this to a lack of education in obesity management and clinician attitudes. The article outlined the assessment process for obese patients, including taking a comprehensive history, evaluating weight gain chronology, previous weight loss attempts, lifestyle, social and psychological factors, medication history, and physical examination findings. It emphasized the need for early intervention and prevention, and the importance of recognizing obesity as a medical problem, with the willingness to intervene and adequate skills or resources. The article also mentioned the use of BMI to categorize obesity, the significance of waist circumference and fitness level in disease risk, and the necessity of assessing patients' readiness for weight loss. It concluded with the importance of physicians being prepared to provide both preventive and therapeutic care for obesity, including a detailed initial assessment and appropriate laboratory and diagnostic tests.