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Assessment of Child Anthropometry in a Large Epidemiologic Study
Published on: February 2, 2017
Are Pediatricians Diagnosing Obese Children?
Katharine Thomas1, Fernando Urrego2
1Department of Research, Ochsner Clinic Foundation, New Orleans, LA ; The University of Queensland School of Medicine, Ochsner Clinical School, New Orleans, LA.
Insights
Pediatricians underdiagnose obesity, with only 1.32% of records showing an obesity diagnosis despite high prevalence. This highlights a critical gap in identifying children needing weight management resources.
Area of Science:
- Pediatric Health
- Public Health
- Clinical Informatics
Background:
- Pediatric obesity is a significant public health issue in American children.
- Underreporting of obesity diagnoses by clinicians is a documented problem.
- Addressing pediatric obesity is crucial due to its social, psychological, and physiological impacts.
Purpose of the Study:
- To assess the documentation rates of overweight and obese Body Mass Index (BMI) diagnoses by pediatricians.
- To analyze the demographics of pediatric patients within the Ochsner Health System for program development.
Main Methods:
- Retrospective review of 175,006 pediatric medical records.
- Data collected from April 1, 2012, to April 1, 2016.
- Analysis focused on the presence of 'obese' or 'overweight' BMI diagnoses.
Main Results:
- Only 1.32% of records documented obesity, and 0.5% documented overweight.
- Actual prevalence meeting CDC criteria was 28.66% for obesity and 30.41% for overweight.
- Patient demographics: 51.76% male, 43.31% white, 43.80% aged 5-12 years.
Conclusions:
- Pediatricians at Ochsner Health Center for Children are underdiagnosing overweight and obesity.
- There is a need for interventions to improve the identification of children with unhealthy BMIs.
- Early identification is key to connecting children with resources for healthy lifestyles and weight management.
Background:
Pediatric obesity is the most prevalent nutritional disorder in American children. The detrimental social, psychological, and physiological effects of obesity call for pediatricians to address this health concern. The literature demonstrates that clinicians are underreporting the diagnosis of obesity in the pediatric setting. The primary purpose of this study was to determine if pediatricians at one pediatrics clinic in the Ochsner Health System are documenting the presence of an overweight or obese body mass index (BMI) as a diagnosis in the medical record. A secondary purpose of this study was to determine the demographics of all pediatric patients in the Ochsner Health System to be used for program development.
Methods:
A retrospective medical record review was conducted. Records from April 1, 2012 to April 1, 2016, were reviewed for the presence of the diagnosis of BMI classified as obese or overweight.
Results:
We analyzed a total of 175,066 records in this study. Of these records, 1.32% documented a diagnosis of obesity, and 0.5% documented a BMI score indicating overweight. The percentages of patient visits that met the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention criteria to be classified as obese or overweight were 28.66% and 30.41%, respectively. The majority of our pediatric patients were male (51.76%), white (43.31%), and 5-12 years old (43.80%).
Conclusion:
This study demonstrates that pediatricians at Ochsner Health Center for Children are not diagnosing patients who have unhealthy BMI scores as overweight or obese. Interventions are needed to increase the identification of children who may benefit from receiving resources that encourage a healthy lifestyle and optimal weight maintenance.
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