How physician obesity medicine specialists treated obesity before 2012 new drug approvals

A survey of obesity medicine specialists was conducted before the approval of new obesity medications in 2012.

An Internet survey was sent to obesity medicine specialists inquiring about their practice and prescribing habits.

Twenty-five percent of 1992 obesity medicine specialists responded. They used stimulant obesity medication for longer and at higher doses than recommended in the package insert. Medications for other indications were used off-label alone and in combination for obesity treatment. Only 15 % saw surgical patients.

The survey is a baseline for when more obesity medications exist in 5 years. We hope discovering a lack of collaboration between obesity medical specialists and obesity surgeons will stimulate more team work that will benefit obese patients contemplating or undergoing obesity surgery.