Obesity in the Critical Care Setting

The prevalence of obesity continues to rise and is caused by many factors. Obesity places patients at risk for high blood pressure, diabetes, heart disease, and cancer. Although obesity in the normal population is associated with increased morbidity and mortality, obesity in critically ill patients has lower mortality. This is referred to as the obesity paradox, and although not fully understood, involves several mechanisms that demonstrate a protective factor in critically ill obese patients. However, despite the benefit, the management of critically ill obese patients faces many challenges.