Skip Navigation



QJM Advance Access published online on April 13, 2006
QJM, doi:10.1093/qjmed/hcl041
This Article
Right arrow FREE Full Text (PDF) Freely available
Right arrow All Versions of this Article:
99/5/317    most recent
hcl041v1
Right arrow Alert me when this article is cited
Right arrow Alert me if a correction is posted
Services
Right arrow Email this article to a friend
Right arrow Similar articles in this journal
Right arrow Similar articles in PubMed
Right arrow Alert me to new issues of the journal
Right arrow Add to My Personal Archive
Right arrow Download to citation manager
Right arrowRequest Permissions
Right arrow Disclaimer
Google Scholar
Right arrow Articles by Tuthill, A.
Right arrow Articles by Finer, N.
Right arrow Search for Related Content
PubMed
Right arrow PubMed Citation
Right arrow Articles by Tuthill, A.
Right arrow Articles by Finer, N.
Social Bookmarking
Add to CiteULike   Add to Connotea   Add to Del.icio.us  
What's this?

© The Author 2006. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Association of Physicians. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please email: Journals.permissions@oxfordjournals.org
Received January 19, 2006
Accepted March 7, 2006

Original Papers

Psychiatric co-morbidities in patients attending specialist obesity services in the UK

A. Tuthill 1 *, H. Slawik 2, S. O’rahilly 1, and N. Finer 3

1 From the University of Cambridge Department of Clinical Biochemistry, Addenbrooke's Hospital, Cambridge, UK
2 From the Department of Psychiatry, Addenbrooke's Hospital, Cambridge, UK
3 From the Wellcome Trust Clinical Research Facility, Addenbrooke's Hospital, Cambridge, UK

* To whom correspondence should be addressed.
A. Tuthill, E-mail: tt280{at}medschl.cam.ac.uk


  Abstract

Background: The prevalence of obesity is rising, but little is known about its psychosocial correlates.

Aim: To assess psychological co-morbidities and impairment of quality of life in obese individuals seeking treatment at two specialist centres in the UK.

Design: Retrospective analysis of anthropometric and questionnaire data collected at initial clinic visit.

Methods: Patients attending for a first visit between April 2004 and March 2005 completed questionnaires that included scales for measurement of anxiety and depression (Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale), eating disorder-behaviour (Eating Disorder Inventory 2), assessment of body image (Body Image Assessment for Obesity) and quality of life (Impact of Weight on Quality of Life--Lite). We examined the relationships between variables measured on these scales and anthropometric data.

Results: Of 253 questionnaires evaluated, there were elevated scores for depression in 48%, and elevated scores for anxiety in 56%. Twenty-two percent demonstrated scores suggestive of a personality trait that overlaps with an eating disorder; an additional 11.5% had an elevated score for bulimia. About a third of individuals had significant impaired quality of life in the areas of examined.

Discussion: Psychological co-morbidities are common in obese individuals attending specialist weight-management clinics, and may merit consideration at (or before) commencement of a weight loss programme.


Add to CiteULike CiteULike   Add to Connotea Connotea   Add to Del.icio.us Del.icio.us    What's this?


This article has been cited by other articles:


Home page
 DTBHome page
Less weight or more hype with {blacktriangledown}rimonabant?
DTB, June 1, 2007; 45(6): 41 - 44.
[Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

Home page
 JAMAHome page
K. M. Gadde
Effect of rimonabant on weight and cardiometabolic risk factors.
JAMA, August 9, 2006; 296(6): 649 - 650.
[Full Text] [PDF]


Disclaimer: Please note that abstracts for content published before 1996 were created through digital scanning and may therefore not exactly replicate the text of the original print issues. All efforts have been made to ensure accuracy, but the Publisher will not be held responsible for any remaining inaccuracies. If you require any further clarification, please contact our Customer Services Department.