Clinical Scorecard: Obesity Care Lags Behind Advances in Treatment

At a Glance

Key Highlights

• 88% of people with obesity experience stigma impacting care delivery and receipt
• Current reliance on BMI and underuse of staging systems limit effective diagnosis and management
• Treatment options have expanded but access remains limited and care is often short-term

Guideline-Based Recommendations

Diagnosis

• Move beyond BMI as the primary diagnostic tool
• Incorporate staging systems like the Edmonton Obesity Staging System to capture disease severity

Management

• Adopt individualized treatment targets based on complications, risk profiles, and disease stage
• Manage obesity as a chronic disease focusing on long-term outcomes and related complications
• Expand access to pharmacotherapy, surgery, and intensive lifestyle interventions

Monitoring & Follow-up

• Use staging systems to predict outcomes independently of BMI
• Monitor treatment progress beyond weight loss alone

Risks

• Persistent stigma within healthcare settings affecting policy and practice
• Fragmented and short-term care pathways that do not reflect obesity’s chronic nature

Patient & Prescribing Data

Eligible patients for pharmacotherapy, surgery, and intensive lifestyle interventions

Only a small proportion of eligible patients currently receive available therapies despite expanded options

Clinical Best Practices

• Recognize and address stigma to improve patient engagement and care quality
• Implement long-term, individualized management plans for obesity
• Utilize emerging tools such as machine learning-based phenotyping when integrated into clinical workflows
• Set treatment goals tailored to individual patient profiles rather than uniform weight loss targets

References

• Obesity Care Lags Behind Advances in Treatment - Obesity Science & Practice