Impact of a Community-Based Weight Management Program in a North Carolina Health Care System

The Association between a Recorded Diagnosis of Obesity and Clinically Significant Weight Loss in the Primary Care Setting: A Nationwide Registry

INTRODUCTION

Overweight and obesity (OW/OB) are underdiagnosed. The primary aim was to assess whether a diagnosis of OW/OB recorded by a primary care physician (PCP) is associated with clinically significant weight loss, compared to a missed diagnosis. The secondary aim was to investigate the association between OW/OB diagnosis and patient attendance at dietary consultations.

METHODS

This retrospective, observational cohort study was conducted using a nationwide healthcare database. The study included a random sample of 200,000 adults with BMI ≥25 kg/m2, recorded on a primary care visit, between 2014 and 2020. Patients with prior diagnosis of OW/OB or obesity-related complications were excluded. The independent variable was OW/OB diagnosis recorded by the PCP immediately after BMI measurement. The outcome variable was ≥5% weight loss at a second weight measurement within 9-15 months. Multivariate regression analysis was applied.

RESULTS

Of the 200,000 people with OW/OB, 36,033 (18.0%) had a diagnosis of OW/OB, and 37,368 (18.7%) had a second body weight measurement, of which 7,635 (20.4%) lost ≥5% of their baseline body weight. The prescription rate of anti-obesity medication was 1.2% and did not differ between patients who achieved weight loss and those who did not. Those with a recorded diagnosis were 2.6 times more likely to visit a dietitian (odds ratio [OR] 2.57, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 2.56-2.64) and 2.5 times more likely to achieve weight loss (OR 2.53, 95% CI: 2.46-2.60). After adjusting for multiple confounders, including attendance at dietary consultation, people who received OW/OB diagnosis were 32% more likely to achieve weight loss (OR 1.32, 95% CI: 1.28-1.36, p < 0.001) compared to people with missed diagnosis.

CONCLUSIONS

Recording a diagnosis of obesity among relatively healthy people is associated with clinically significant weight loss at 1-year follow-up, independent of attendance at dietary consultation. Early obesity diagnosis is a significant opportunity to promote weight loss in the primary care setting and may affect weight trajectory.

Opportunities for General Internal Medicine to Promote Equity in Obesity Care

The number and complexity of obesity treatments has increased rapidly in recent years. This is driven by the approval of new anti-obesity medications (AOMs) that produce larger degrees of weight loss than previously approved AOMs. Unfortunately, access to these highly effective therapies and to integrated team-based obesity care is limited by intra-/interpersonal patient, institutional/practitioner, community, and policy factors. We contextualized these complexities and the impact of patients' social drivers of health (SDOH) by adapting the social ecological model for obesity. Without multi-level intervention, these barriers to care will deepen the existing inequities in obesity prevalence and treatment outcomes among historically underserved communities. As General Internal Medicine (GIM) physicians, we can help our patients navigate the complexities of evidence-based obesity treatments. As care team leaders, GIM physicians are well-positioned to (1) improve education for trainees and practitioners, (2) address healthcare-associated weight stigma, (3) advocate for equity in treatment accessibility, and (4) coordinate interdisciplinary teams around non-traditional models of care focused on upstream (e.g., policy changes, insurance coverage, health system culture change, medical education requirements) and downstream (e.g., evidence-based weight management didactics for trainees, using non-stigmatizing language with patients, developing interdisciplinary weight management clinics) strategies to promote optimal obesity care for all patients.

Supporting faculty development for obesity education: A National Survey of United States family medicine residency programme directors

Obesity is the most common chronic condition in the United States (US), yet primary care physicians face barriers in providing obesity treatment. This study examines the prevalence of American Board of Obesity Medicine (ABOM) certified obesity specialists on the faculty of US Family Medicine residency training programmes, the preparedness of graduating resident physicians to treat obesity, and residency training programme director preferences for supporting faculty development to improve residency education in obesity management. This cross-sectional on-line survey of programme directors addressed the number of ABOM-certified faculty, perceived graduate preparedness to treat obesity, and priorities to improve faculty expertise and obesity curriculum. Of 672 eligible programme directors, 298 (44%) responded to our survey. Most programmes (76%) had no ABOM-certified faculty. The proportion of programme directors assessing their graduates as prepared to care for patients with obesity has significantly decreased in the last 5 years (2018: 74%, 2022: 58%, p = .016). Residents in programmes with ABOM-certified faculty member were more likely to be assessed as very prepared to provide medical care (18% vs. 7.8% p = .047). A majority (54%) of programme directors identified limited faculty training and expertise as the biggest faculty and resident-level barrier to quality obesity care. This study demonstrates an important trend towards increasing ABOM-certification among Family Medicine residency programme faculty and an urgent need to prioritise faculty development to improve faculty expertise and resident training to address the obesity epidemic.

A Primary Care-Based Weight Navigation Program

Importance

Evidence-based weight management treatments (WMTs) are underused; strategies are needed to increase WMT use and patients' weight loss.

Objective

To evaluate the association of a primary care-based weight navigation program (WNP) with WMT use and weight loss.

Design, Setting, and Participants

This cohort study comprised a retrospective evaluation of a quality improvement program conducted from October 1, 2020, to September 30, 2021. Data analysis was performed from August 2, 2022, to March 7, 2024. Adults with obesity and 1 or more weight-related condition from intervention and control sites in a large academic health system in the Midwestern US were propensity matched on sociodemographic and clinical factors.

Exposure

WNP, in which American Board of Obesity Medicine-certified primary care physicians offered weight-focused visits and guided patients' selection of preference-sensitive WMTs.

Main Outcomes and Measures

Primary outcomes were feasibility measures, including rates of referral to and engagement in the WNP. Secondary outcomes were mean weight loss, percentage of patients achieving 5% or more and 10% or more weight loss, referral to WMTs, and number of antiobesity medication prescriptions at 12 months.

Results

Of 264 patients, 181 (68.6%) were female and mean (SD) age was 49.5 (13.0) years; there were no significant differences in demographic characteristics between WNP patients (n = 132) and matched controls (n = 132). Of 1159 WNP-eligible patients, 219 (18.9%) were referred to the WNP and 132 (11.4%) completed a visit. In a difference-in-differences analysis, WNP patients lost 4.9 kg more than matched controls (95% CI, 2.11-7.76; P < .001), had 4.4% greater weight loss (95% CI, 2.2%-6.4%; P < .001), and were more likely to achieve 5% or more weight loss (odds ratio [OR], 2.90; 95% CI, 1.54-5.58); average marginal effects, 21.2%; 95% CI, 8.8%-33.6%) and 10% or more weight loss (OR, 7.19; 95% CI, 2.55-25.9; average marginal effects, 17.4%; 95% CI, 8.7%-26.2%). Patients in the WNP group were referred at higher rates to WMTs, including bariatric surgery (18.9% vs 9.1%; P = .02), a low-calorie meal replacement program (16.7% vs 3.8%; P < .001), and a Mediterranean-style diet and activity program (10.6% vs 1.5%; P = .002). There were no between-group differences in antiobesity medication prescribing.

Conclusions and Relevance

The findings of this cohort study suggest that WNP is feasible and associated with greater WMT use and weight loss than matched controls. The WNP warrants evaluation in a large-scale trial.