Multifaceted Individualities in Pharmacological Treatments of Obesity

Marko      Boban

doi:10.2174/1574884711308020001

Abstract

Simply put, there is no cure for obesity. Pharmaceuticals that induce weight loss of extent of at least 5% from baseline are applied and tested as the weight loosing drugs. Available guidelines include recommendations that pharmacologic treatment of obesity may be offered to patients with BMI > 30 kg/m2; or BMI >27 kg/m2 and obesity related comorbidity. Both categories cumulatively include essential boundary condition of failing to achieve clinically significant weight loss through diet and exercise alone. In despite the exceedingly growing number of investigations and approaches, overall achievements in pharmacological treatments of obesity are limited. Antiobesity drugs are typically burdened with issues concerning the sustainability of lost weight, besides limitations in short term efficiency. Another important problem lays in the fact that the drug induced weight loss could be annihilated or reversed if patient does not adhere to personal lifestyle changes. Later include adjustments in behaviour sphere, dietary habits and physical activity. Recently, focus of clinical interests came to prevention of obesity epidemic through optimization of chronic pharmacotherapies, especially ones associated with weight gain side-effect. This review presents the most important representatives of antiobesity drugs and essential principles that ought to be taken in to count in order to treat obesity more successfully.

Keywords: Body mass index, drug treatment, obesity, orlistat, phentermine, topiramate, weight losing

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