The Burden of Obesity in Health Care

A special issue of Healthcare (ISSN 2227-9032).

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (15 February 2014) | Viewed by 25259

Special Issue Editors


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Guest Editor
1. School of Health Sciences, College of Health, Medicine and Wellbeing, University of Newcastle, Callaghan, NSW 2308, Australia
2. Food and Nutrition Program, Hunter Medical Research Institute, New Lambton Heights, NSW 2305, Australia
Interests: nutrition; dietary assessment; e&mHealth; precision and personalised nutrition; systematic review
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Guest Editor
School of Population Health, The University of Queensland, Herston, Queensland, QLD 4006, Australia
Interests: cost-effectiveness; prevention; non-communicable disease

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Obesity is prevalent internationally and at all ages and lifestages. While the relationship between obesity, poor dietary patterns and sub-optimal leveal of physical activity with the risk of morbidity and mortality due to chronic conditions has been examined extensively, the relationship with healthcare usage and costs is less studied. This special issue of Healthcare “The burden of obesity in health care” welcomes submission of previously unpublished manuscripts from original work on all the above aspects.

Prof. Dr. Clare E. Collins
Dr. Linda J. Cobiac
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Healthcare is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2700 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • obesity
  • healthcare cost
  • healthcare use
  • health economics
  • diet
  • physical activity

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Published Papers (3 papers)

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Research

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Article
Changing Body Image and Well-Being: Following the Experience of Massive Weight Loss and Body Contouring Surgery
by Jo Gilmartin, Andrew F. Long and Mark Soldin
Healthcare 2014, 2(2), 150-165; https://doi.org/10.3390/healthcare2020150 - 27 Mar 2014
Cited by 11 | Viewed by 8037
Abstract
This paper reports on the perception of changing body image and well-being for patients who had undergone plastic surgery following massive weight loss. The exploratory, qualitative study was undertaken with 20 patients from one teaching hospital in the south of England. Semi-structured interviews [...] Read more.
This paper reports on the perception of changing body image and well-being for patients who had undergone plastic surgery following massive weight loss. The exploratory, qualitative study was undertaken with 20 patients from one teaching hospital in the south of England. Semi-structured interviews were carried out and a thematic analysis of the data undertaken. The results provide important insights regarding body contouring influencing body image change and the adjustment process involved. The ability to pursue self-esteem and the accruing social benefits is emphasized in the interrelated sub themes including social acceptance, undoing depression and sexual vitality. Body contouring surgery following massive weight loss appears to facilitate improvement in body image and well-being. Adjustment to the changing body image is both empowering and challenging. Supportive educational programmes need to be developed to assist this transition to a more positive body image and appreciation; these could usefully include access to and involvement with patient support groups. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue The Burden of Obesity in Health Care)
194 KiB  
Article
Living with a Gastric Band: A Qualitative Study
by Michael Pfeil, Kenda Crozier, Amanda Pulford, Yasmin Ferguson, David Mahon and Michael Lewis
Healthcare 2014, 2(1), 47-59; https://doi.org/10.3390/healthcare2010047 - 13 Jan 2014
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 6854
Abstract
Gastric banding is an established and effective form of weightloss surgery. Semi-structured interviews explored the experiences of gastric banding of twenty purposively recruited patients one year after surgery. Data was analysed using thematic analysis. Results: Three themes emerged. They included ‘Exercising choice’ (restriction [...] Read more.
Gastric banding is an established and effective form of weightloss surgery. Semi-structured interviews explored the experiences of gastric banding of twenty purposively recruited patients one year after surgery. Data was analysed using thematic analysis. Results: Three themes emerged. They included ‘Exercising choice’ (restriction by the band was counterbalanced by new food-related choices.); ‘Rediscovering life’ (improved health, physical ability and energy enabled the patients to re-discover life.) and ‘Goals achieved with no regrets’ (patients had nearly achieved their self-set goals.) Conclusion: Beyond achieving weight loss and improved health, the participants had improved quality of life as defined by patients. Knowledge about this active process informs the care of these patients. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue The Burden of Obesity in Health Care)
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Review

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Review
Obesity and Serious Mental Ill Health: A Critical Review of the Literature
by Tim Bradshaw and Hilary Mairs
Healthcare 2014, 2(2), 166-182; https://doi.org/10.3390/healthcare2020166 - 1 Apr 2014
Cited by 45 | Viewed by 9610
Abstract
Individuals who experience serious mental ill health such as schizophrenia are more likely to be overweight or obese than others in the general population. This high prevalence of obesity and other associated metabolic disturbances, such as type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease, contribute [...] Read more.
Individuals who experience serious mental ill health such as schizophrenia are more likely to be overweight or obese than others in the general population. This high prevalence of obesity and other associated metabolic disturbances, such as type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease, contribute to a reduced life expectancy of up to 25 years. Several reasons have been proposed for high levels of obesity including a shared biological vulnerability between serious mental ill health and abnormal metabolic processes, potentially compounded by unhealthy lifestyles. However, emerging evidence suggests that the most significant cause of weight gain is the metabolic side effects of antipsychotic medication, usual treatment for people with serious mental ill health. In this paper we review the prevalence of obesity in people with serious mental ill health, explore the contribution that antipsychotic medication may make to weight gain and discuss the implications of this data for future research and the practice of mental health and other professionals. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue The Burden of Obesity in Health Care)
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