Clinical Practice Guideline, Essay Example

Introduction

A current clinical practice guideline for obesity treatment was released in late 2013 through collaboration between the American College of Cardiology, the Obesity Society, and the American Heart Association in order to establish a treatment plan for patients who are obese through the promotion of healthy lifestyle interventions and /or surgery, based upon existing evidence (Obesity Society, 2013). This was determined based upon a systematic review of existing evidence to support the need for additional guidance regarding diets, lifestyle interventions, and bariatric surgery to promote weight loss (Obesity Society, 2013).

Analysis

The clinical practice guideline is current and supports an expanded approach to address BMI through annual doctor visits to identify those at risk of stroke or heart disease (Obesity Society, 2013). Furthermore, the guideline supports the expansion of individual weight loss interventions that address caloric intake, physical activity, and behavioral modifications (Obesity Society, 2013). These guidelines reflect the importance of developing new strategies to address specific patient needs so that weight loss is achieved on a gradual basis (Obesity Society, 2013). Prior evidence suggests that it is necessary for physicians to adopt new obesity guidelines in order to address this patient population, using existing evidence in order to ensure that they are provided with specific guidance to promote weight loss (Jensen et.al, 2013).

One issue to consider with the updated 2013 guidelines is the lack of focus on diet composition, which is a critical determinant of weight loss (Astrup and Brand-Miller, 2014). This perspective is important because prior evidence suggests that specific types of diets based upon their composition may have greater overall benefits for patients (Astrup and Brand-Miller, 2014). This is a relevant concern that requires further evaluation because it may limit the effectiveness of the guidelines as applied to the general population of obese children and adults (Astrup and Brand-Miller, 2014). Weight loss is a very difficult process to achieve; therefore, a combination of efforts must be explored that will address specific factors that will impact patients, including diet composition (Astrup and Brand-Miller, 2014).

Treatment approaches to manage obesity have been instrumental in achieving weight loss in many individuals, and there is a significant emphasis on BMI and waist circumference (Wyatt, 2013). Greater attention must be paid to the relationship between obesity and diabetes in order to accomplish the objectives of reducing weight loss using updated clinical practice guidelines in order to prevent type 2 diabetes in adults (Wyatt, 2013). This relationship must be continuously addressed as a means of evaluating the impact of obesity on a host of other conditions, including diabetes (Wyatt, 2013).

Conclusion

Updated clinical practice guidelines for obesity represent a challenge to the medical community to address this condition directly as a preventative mechanism in order to reduce the likelihood of developing other conditions that are related to obesity. For at-risk populations, reducing weight is a difficult process that requires expert knowledge and guidance in order to achieve effective outcomes and long-term health and wellbeing. This is accomplished using the updated guidelines as a determining factor in working with patients to improve their weight loss activities and to use lifestyle interventions accordingly. It is expected that as awareness regarding these guidelines increases within the medical community, it is likely that physicians will promote weight loss interventions by communicating with patients and providing them with the resources that are necessary to support healthier lifestyles, which are likely to include monitoring of caloric intake and increased physical activity, with surgery as an option in extreme circumstances.

References

Astrup, A., and Brand-Miller, J. (2014). Obesity: have new guidelines overlooked the role of diet composition? Nature Reviews Endocrinology, 10, 132-133.

Jensen, M. D., Ryan, D. H., Hu, F. B., Stevens, F. J., Hubbard, V. S., Stevens, V. J., & Yanovski, S. Z. (2013). 2013 AHA/ACC/TOS Guideline for the Management of Overweight and Obesity in Adults. Circulation, retrieved from http://circ.ahajournals.org/content/early/2013/11/11/01.cir.0000437739.71477.ee.full.pdf+html

Obesity Society (2013). TOS, AHA, ACC release new obesity treatment guidelines. Retrieved from http://www.obesity.org/news-center/tos-aha-acc-release-new-obesity-treatment-guidelines.htm

Wyatt, H.R. (2013). Update on treatment strategies for obesity. The Journal of  Endocrinology and Metabolism, 98(4).