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Query: UMLS:C0028754 (obesity)
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A comparison of health status between 779 Seventh-day Adventists, who have a strong commitment to heal-related life styles, and two other groups of people--8363 persons referred by general practitioners and 9825 volunteers--was made. The Seventh-day Adventists showed less impairment of systolic and diastolic blood pressures, of plasma cholesterol and plasma urate concentrations, and of lung ventilatory capacity; and less obesity at most specific ages. With increasing age, the level of breathlessness, reported heart disease, hypertension, and hypertensive and diuretic therapy in this sample approached that of the comparative groups, possibly because of natural attrition of high-risk persons in the latter. Depression, sleeplessness, use of sedatives and tranquillizers were lower in the Seventh-day Adventists; although, once again, a drawing together of the three groups in older age categories was evident. It is concluded that the life style of Seventh-day Adventists is conducive to lessened morbidity, delayed mortality, and decreased call on health services in comparison with the general population.
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PMID:Health status of Seventh-Day Adventists. 47 Jun 66

The treatment of obesity is one of the major measures available today in the field of preventive medicine. In particular, the coronary epidemic of Western civilisation would be halted, and most cases of maturity-onset diabetes prevented, if obesity were to be treated effectively. Anorectic drugs act mainly on the satiety centre in the hypothalamus to produce anorexia. They also have various metabolic effects involving fat and carbohydrate metabolism, but many of these may be secondary to loss of weight. Most of the drugs are related directly or indirectly to amphetamine and in addition act by increasing general physical activity. Anorectic drugs tend to lose their effect after some months, and part of this reduction in effect may be due to chemical alterations produced by the drugs in the brain. All the drugs, with the exception of fenfluramine, have a stimulant effect on the central nervous system in some individuals, resulting in restlessness and nervousness, irritability and insomnia. Fenfluramine commonly produces drowsiness in normal doses, but has stimulant effects with overdosage. Dexamphetamine, phenmetrazine and benzphetamine all tend to cause euphoria and the risk of addiction is therefore considerable. Euphoria occasionally occurs with diethylpropion, phentermine and chlorphentermine, but to a much lesser extent. Side-effects also occur due to sympathetic stimulation and gastro-intestinal irritation. These side-effects may cause some individuals to stop taking the drug, but are never serious or dangerous. Drug interactions may occur with monoamine oxidase inhibitors and to a clinically unimportant extent, with antihypertensive drugs. The anorectic drugs have a very definite part to play in the treatment of obesity, mainly for those individuals who have altered their eating habits but have come to a plateau of weight which they find difficult to get below. The drugs are best given in a long-acting form and can safely be continued as long as weight loss persists, provided that the clinician exercises careful supervision. Dexamphetamine, phenmetrazine and benzphetamine should rarely be used because of the danger of addiction, and chlorphentermine is potentially hazardous for long-term use. Diethylpropion emerges as the drug of first choice, as fenfluramine has a tendency to cause depression and has a higher incidence of side-effects. Fenfluramine is mainly useful for people who are especially tense and for obese maturity-onset diabetics who have been unable to lose weight with the biguanides. Mazindol and phentermine appear to be useful as alternative drugs.
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PMID:Anorectic drugs: use in general practice. 78 35

Pathologically increased apetite is the most tormenting symptom of overweight conditions and therefore, along with dietetic treatment which plays an essential role, it is most expedient to resort to anorectic drugs also. Recently, the Sanorex preparation (Mazindol, Teronak, AN 448 degrees--imidazo-isoindole derivative having a tricyclic structure) is ever more extensively used. The action of the drug is studied in a series of 32 obesity individuals under sanatorial conditions and normocaloric diet, over a period of twenty seven days. The new preparation Sanorex which causes aversion to food, given in small doses, accounts for prompt and reliable control of the apetite--9590 kg reduction, 0,362 kg mean daily weight loss (p less than 0,05), and equal intensity of weight loss in either of the sexes (p less than 0,01). Side effects such as dryness in the mouth, very strong and moderate thurst, insomnia, superficial sleep, headache, elevated excitability, tachycardia, general feebleness are transitory, subside within two weeks, and are tolerated comparatively well by the patients included in the series. Sanorex administration may be recommended provided due consideration is given to the usual limitations implied by the continuous use of new drugs.
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PMID:[Treatment of obesity with the anoretic Sanorex]. 80 32

An obese patient with a ten year history of respiratory failure presented with insomnia and marked daytime somnolence. Respriatory failure had been attributed to obesity, respiratory centre insensitivity to carbon dioxide, and to diffuse airways obstruction. To investigate the possible role of episodic apnoea with frequent nocturnal arousals, continous recordings were obtained during sleep of arterial oxygen saturation, oesophageal pressure and the motions of the rib-cage and abdomen/diaphragm. Repeated episodes of hypoventilation and profound hypoxaemia were found which were due to intermittent obstruction of the upper airway rather than to cessation of breathing efforts. During the episodes of hypoxaemia, values of arterial O2 tension fell to as low as 24 mmHg. Episodic hypoxaemia was relieved but not abolished, by the use of a collar, designed to hold the mandible forward. Previous reports indicated that recognition of intermittent obstruction of the upper airway during sleep and treatment by a permanent tracheostomy, resulted in a significant long-term imporvement of pulmonary and cardiac function and relief of insomnia and day-time somnolence. When tracheostomy is inadvisable, as in the present patient, it is hoped that similar long-term benefits will result from a supportive collar.
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PMID:Intemittent obstruction of the upper airway during sleep causing profound hypoxaemia. A neglected mechanism exacerbating chronic respiratory failure. 107 82

The sympathomimetic agent ephedrine has potent thermogenic and anti-obesity properties in rodents. The effect is markedly enhanced by caffeine, while caffeine given alone has no effect. This study was undertaken to find out if a similar weight reducing synergism between ephedrine and caffeine is present in obese patients. In a randomized, placebo-controlled, double blind study, 180 obese patients were treated by diet (4.2 MJ/day) and either an ephedrine/caffeine combination (20mg/200mg), ephedrine (20 mg), caffeine (200 mg) or placebo three times a day for 24 weeks. Withdrawals were distributed equally in the four groups, and 141 patients completed the trial. Mean weight losses was significantly greater with the combination than with placebo from week 8 to week 24 (ephedrine/caffeine, 16.6 +/- 6.8 kg vs. placebo, 13.2 +/- 6.6 kg (mean +/- s.d.), P = 0.0015). Weight loss in both the ephedrine and the caffeine groups was similar to that of the placebo group. Side effects (tremor, insomnia and dizziness) were transient and after eight weeks of treatment they had reached placebo levels. Systolic and diastolic blood pressure fell similarly in all four groups. We conclude, that in analogy with animal studies, the ephedrine/caffeine combination is effective, while caffeine and ephedrine separately are ineffective for the treatment of human obesity.
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PMID:The effect and safety of an ephedrine/caffeine compound compared to ephedrine, caffeine and placebo in obese subjects on an energy restricted diet. A double blind trial. 131 81

Between February and October 1990, researchers analyzed data on 110 postmenopausal women attending the university women's clinic in Vienna, Austria to determine whether a relationship exists between fertility, body shape, and menopause. Fertility incorporated number of pregnancies and births and age at each birth and induced and spontaneous abortions. They did not find a significant correlation between fertility and age at menopause. Yet there was a slight positive correlation between age at individual pregnancies and age at menopause regardless of whether it was the 1st or last pregnancy. The more pregnancies a woman experienced the larger her body shape became (p.01-.05). Thus multiparous women had more subcutaneous fat. In fact, fat distribution increases sex hormone levels which, along with the changes in hormone levels induced by pregnancy, probably delayed menopause. In addition, fertility was also positively associated with severity of menopause symptoms (p.01-.05). These symptoms included hot flushes, weakness, breast tension, urine loss, mood changes, headache, palpitation, vaginal dryness, sleeplessness, and loss of libido. Even though higher numbers of pregnancies increase estrogen secretion during menopause, many menopausal symptoms should not be very severe in theory since the higher estrogen levels abate severity. Yet the somatic and psychological stress of large family size appears to offset any advantages of higher estrogen levels induced by subcutaneous fat. Obese women face greater psychological stress than slender women since they do not conform to the cultural definition of beauty.
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PMID:Relations between fertility, body shape and menopause in Austrian women. 142 82

Physicians examined 216 women who presented at Chittaranjan Seva Sadan College of Obstetrics, Gynaecology, and Child Health in Calcutta, India, and had undergone surgical sterilization at least 2 years earlier. Endometrial biopsies during the late secretory phase in the 32 cases with excessive bleeding during the late menstrual period found proliferative changes: dilated glands in 28 cases and poor secretory phase in 4 cases. The 12 ovarian biopsies revealed cortical stromal hyperplasia in 1 case. None of the control cases (i.e., those with no menorrhagia) had any ovarian changes. Observed pelvic pathologies included in the order of frequency: cystic ovaries, hydrosalpinx, uterine fibroids, pelvic endometriosis, uterine prolapse, chronic cervicitis, and scar endometriosis. Most of the 216 women were 25 to 35 years old and the youngest was 22 years old. Menorrhagia was the most common complaint (59.2%) and 30 to 35 year old women suffered from it the most. Among women who had no pelvic pathology, dysfunctional uterine bleeding was responsible for menorrhagia. Dysmenorrhea was the next most frequent complaint (29.6%). Intermenstrual bleeding, abnormally infrequent menstruation, and secondary amenorrhea were other menstrual disturbances (5.56%, 4.17%, and 1.39%, respectively). Other relatively common symptoms associated with surgical sterilization were abdominal pain (25%), abdominal discomfort and backache (14.8%), and whitish, viscid vaginal or uterine discharge (12.03%). Less frequent symptoms were obesity, painful scar, insomnia, irritability, depression, and regret. Proper preoperative and postoperative counseling would have prevented many of the complications.
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PMID:Aftermaths of surgical sterilisation with special reference to menstrual disturbances. 153 7

Hypertension is quite common in the elderly population. Isolated systolic hypertension and diastolic hypertension are associated with cardiovascular complications. Like younger patients, the elderly may have labile hypertension. On the other hand, pseudohypertension, auscultatory gap, and postural hypotension are peculiar to the elderly. Obesity, atherosclerosis, arteriosclerosis, baroreceptor insensitivity, decline in renal function, physical inactivity, and insomnia are factors that can lead to or aggravate hypertension in older patients. Secondary hypertension should be suspected if elevated blood pressure first appears late in life or becomes resistant to previously adequate treatment. Spontaneous hypokalemia can indicate primary aldosteronism. Elevation in the serum creatinine level of a patient taking an angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitor suggests bilateral renovascular hypertension. The goal of antihypertensive therapy is to prevent morbidity, disability, and death from complications and to maintain quality of life. Psychosocial factors may play an important role in controlling hypertension. Nonpharmacologic treatment, such as weight loss, salt restriction, and exercise, should always be tried prior to and in conjunction with medical therapy. Antihypertensive drugs often cause side effects and should be prescribed with caution. Always start with a low dose and gradually increase it if necessary. All drugs that reduce blood pressure in the younger individual also work in the elderly. ACE inhibitors and calcium blockers are particularly useful because of their low incidence of adverse effects.
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PMID:Hypertension in elderly patients. The special concerns in this growing population. 154 24

An association between the ingestion tryptophan and a syndrome characterized by scleroderma-like skin abnormalities, fasciitis, and eosinophilia has recently been recognized in the United States. We report the clinical and histopathological findings in nine patients and the results of biochemical analyses of tryptophan metabolism in seven patients with this syndrome. Edema of the extremities, frequently accompanied by pruritus, paresthesia, and myalgia, developed in the nine patients (six women and three men; age range, 30 to 66 years) 1 to 18 months after the start of therapy with tryptophan (1.5 to 3.0 g daily) for insomnia, depression, or obesity. Five patients were taking drugs (benzodiazepines) known to inhibit hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal function, and one had adrenal insufficiency. All had blood eosinophilia in the acute phase of their illness (mean eosinophil count [+/- SD], 3.62 +/- 2.87 X 10(9) cells per liter). All had histopathological changes in the dermis and subcutaneous tissue typical of scleroderma, and seven patients had eosinophils. The fascia was inflamed and fibrotic, and adjacent skeletal muscle often showed perifascicular inflammation. Tryptophan was discontinued in all patients, and eight received prednisone. The cutaneous symptoms improved, but only two patients had complete resolution of their illness. The patients had plasma levels of tryptophan before and after an oral dose of tryptophan that were similar to those in normal subjects. Plasma levels of L-kynurenine and quinolinic acid, which are metabolites of tryptophan, were significantly higher in four patients with active disease than in three patients studied after eosinophilia had resolved or in five normal subjects (P less than 0.001)--findings consistent with the activation of the enzyme indoleamine-2,3-dioxygenase. This illness resembles eosinophilic fasciitis and probably represents one aspect of the recently reported eosinophilia-myalgia syndrome. The development of the syndrome may result from a confluence of several factors, including the ingestion of tryptophan, exposure to agents that activate indoleamine-2,3-dioxygenase, and possibly, impaired function of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis.
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PMID:Scleroderma, fasciitis, and eosinophilia associated with the ingestion of tryptophan. 231 25

Fluoxetine is a highly specific serotonin reuptake inhibitor. In studies that used a dose of 60 mg once daily, fluoxetine-treated patients consistently had greater weight loss than placebo-treated patients. In six double-blind, placebo-controlled studies of 6-8 wk duration, mean weight changes on fluoxetine were approximately 0.5 kg/wk. Longer term studies have shown maximum mean weight loss to occur at 12-20 wk of therapy. Studies have consistently shown improvements in indices of glycemic control as well as weight loss in obese diabetic patients. Safety analysis has been performed on data from 3491 obese patients in controlled clinical trials of up to 52 wk duration. Adverse events with an incidence of greater than 5%, which were reported significantly more frequently by fluoxetine-treated patients, were headache, asthenia, nausea, diarrhea, somnolence, insomnia, nervousness, sweating, and tremor. Fluoxetine is effective, well tolerated, and safe in the treatment of obesity and obese diabetics.
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PMID:Clinical studies with fluoxetine in obesity. 172 31


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