The critically injured obese patient: A review and a look ahead

摘要

According to recent estimates, approximately 103 million adults in the United States, representing greater than one-third of the population, have a body mass index (BMI) greater than 30 kg/m2, classifying them as obese.1 Worldwide, the number of obese adults is greater than 500 million, and these numbers continue to increase annually.2 In addition, the number of obese children and adolescents has risen dramatically in recent years, suggesting a future in which obesity rates will continue to rise.2 Obesity and its associated complications place substantial strain on the health care system, both logistically and financially. These patients consume more health care resources than patients of normal BMI, with Finkelstein and colleagues3 estimating that $147 billion dollars were spent in 2008 on obesity-related illness, and that the costs to third-party payors for obese patients were $1,429 higher per individual than for their normal BMI counterparts.