title: Obesity level and attrition: support for patient-treatment matching in obesity treatment.
abstract: Obesity treatment studies report attrition rates from 20% to 45%. To reduce attrition, researchers have proposed matching patients to treatment based upon level of obesity. The current study attempted to validate the commonly held assumption that a mismatch between obesity level and treatment will promote attrition. The level of obesity and attrition rates of 39 adults who enrolled in a 12-session behavior therapy program were examined. As obesity level increased, so did attrition. Sixty-nine percent of subjects with mild obesity, 43% of subjects with moderate obesity and 0% of subjects with severe obesity completed treatment.
authors.affiliation: Brown University School of Medicine, Providence, RI, USA.
authors.forename: M M
authors.initials: MM
authors.lastname: Clark
authors.forename: B J
authors.initials: BJ
authors.lastname: Guise
authors.forename: R S
authors.initials: RS
authors.lastname: Niaura
mesh_terms: D015992:Body Mass Index; D001835:Body Weight; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009765:Obesity / Q000145:classification / Q000628:therapy*; D010352:Patient Dropouts