VIDEO: Treatment options for patients with overweight or obesity

There are seven different anti-obesity medications that are approved in the United States and a number of others that are used off label, most commonly metformin, according to Jennifer C. Seger, MD, FOMA, ABFM, ABOM.

Seger, a family medicine and obesity medicine specialist in San Antonio, reviewed these medications during a presentation at the Obesity Medicine Association (OMA) Spring Conference.

The FDA has approved anti-obesity medications for patients with a BMI of 30 kg/m² or greater and those with a BMI of 27 kg/m² or greater who have at least one obesity-related comorbidity. But there are other scenarios where medication may be considered, according to Seger. For example, anti-obesity medication may be used to help patients maintain weight loss “that was achieved through whatever means,” she said.

“If you think about it, when we treat patients for many other chronic medical diseases such as high blood pressure, when that blood pressure is controlled, we don’t stop the medication,” she told Healio. “It’s very important that we start to treat obesity seriously, longitudinally and comprehensively, just like we do any other chronic medical condition.”

In this video, Seger discusses highlights from her presentation on anti-obesity medications.

For more information on this topic, she recommended visiting the OMA’s online academy.

Reference:

Seger JC. The essentials of AOMs — A case-based approach. Presented at: Obesity Medical Association conference; April 27-May 1, 2022; (hybrid meeting).