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An Acupoint Catgut-embedding Therapy for Treating Obesity
Published on: April 4, 2025
Therapy of obese patients with cardiovascular disease
Ankur Jindal1, Adam Whaley-Connell, Stephen Brietzke
1University of Missouri Columbia, School of Medicine, United States.
Insights
Obesity is a major public health issue with limited effective treatments. This review covers current and emerging obesity treatments, including new medications and bariatric surgery, focusing on cardiovascular risk reduction.
Area of Science:
- Public Health
- Pharmacology
- Cardiology
Background:
- Obesity is a global epidemic linked to serious health issues like diabetes and cardiovascular disease.
- Effective long-term obesity treatment options are scarce, especially after sibutramine withdrawal.
- Modest weight loss significantly improves cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk factors.
Purpose of the Study:
- To review current and emerging pharmacological and surgical treatments for obesity.
- To evaluate the efficacy of these treatments in improving cardiovascular risk factors.
- To highlight recently approved anti-obesity medications.
Main Methods:
- Literature review of obesity treatments.
- Analysis of efficacy data for weight loss interventions.
- Focus on pharmacological and surgical approaches.
Main Results:
- Orlistat remains a primary pharmacological option; Belviq and Qsymia are newly approved.
- Bariatric surgery is effective for obesity and comorbidities.
- Weight loss interventions demonstrably improve diabetes and CVD risk factors.
Conclusions:
- Despite challenges, effective obesity management strategies exist, including new medications and surgery.
- Improving cardiovascular health is a key benefit of weight loss.
- Ongoing research is crucial for developing better anti-obesity therapies.
Abstract:
Obesity has reached epidemic proportions and is a significant public health concern. Obesity is associated with increased diabetes, cardiovascular and kidney disease, and associated morbidity and mortality. Despite the increasing public health problem of obesity, there is a dearth of effective treatment options. Following the FDA mandated withdrawal of sibutramine, the treatment options for obesity were limited to orlistat as the only pharmacological treatment option for long-term management of obesity. Recently two new medications (Belviq and Qsymia) were approved by FDA for long-term management of obesity. Many other antiobesity drugs are under development. Bariatric surgery has been shown to be effective in the treatment of obesity and its comorbidities. The available data suggest that even modest weight loss improves diabetes and cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk factors. We summarize the treatment options for obesity and the efficacy of these options in ameliorating cardiovascular risk factors. We also focus on the recently approved antiobesity drugs.
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