title: Anti-obesity drug use before professional treatment in Taiwan.
abstract: Between July 2004 and June 2005, a cross-sectional study was performed to determine the prevalence and patterns of anti-obesity medicine use among subjects seeking obesity treatment in Taiwan. Eighteen obesity outpatient clinics were selected via a random stratified sampling method and 1,060 first-visit clients (791 females and 269 males) aged above 18 years were enrolled and then completed a self-administered questionnaire. The prevalence of anti-obesity medicine use was 50.8%; more females than male used anti-obesity medicines (53.6% vs. 42.4%). Of the 1,060 subjects, 17.1% had used orlistat, 21.1% had taken sibutramine, and 18.3% had utilized un-proven drugs such as cocktail therapy and other anti-obesity drugs. Furthermore, 23.6% and 22.4% of subjects indicated that they concurrently used Chinese herbal preparations and dietary supplements, respectively. Logistic regression analyses demonstrated that the odds ratio (OR) for anti-obesity medicine use was substantially higher in females (OR, 1.9; 95% CI, 1.3-2.6), those aged 18-24 years (OR, 1.6; 95% CI, 1.0-2.6), those with a body mass index (BMI) >35 kg/m2 (OR, 3.4; 95% CI, 2.1-5.7) and respondents concurrently using Chinese herbal preparations (OR, 1.7; 95% CI, 1.2-2.4) and dietary supplements (OR, 2.2; 95% CI, 1.6-3.1). In conclusion, the prevalence of anti-obesity drugs use is high among Taiwanese adults before they seek obesity treatment. Young, obese females, and those who had taken Chinese herbal preparations/dietary supplements had a high likelihood to report using anti-obesity medicines. Use of unproven weight-loss drugs is common and warrants further investigation.
authors: Community Medicine Research Center and Institute of Public Health, National Yang Ming University, Peitou, Taipei, Taiwan.
authors: Tsan-Hon
authors: TH
authors: Liou
authors: Chih-Hsing
authors: CH
authors: Wu
authors: Hsu-Chen
authors: HC
authors: Chien
authors: Wen-Yuan
authors: WY
authors: Lin
authors: Wei-Jei
authors: WJ
authors: Lee
authors: Pesus
authors: P
authors: Chou
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D017677:Age Distribution; D019440:Anti-Obesity Agents / Q000600:supply & distribution* / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D015992:Body Mass Index; D003131:Combined Modality Therapy; D016001:Confidence Intervals; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D003503:Cyclobutanes; D019587:Dietary Supplements; D004363:Drug Utilization / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D019317:Evidence-Based Medicine; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007783:Lactones; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009765:Obesity / Q000188:drug therapy*; D016017:Odds Ratio; D000077403:Orlistat; D010044:Outpatient Clinics, Hospital / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D008517:Phytotherapy; D015995:Prevalence; D017678:Sex Distribution; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D013624:Taiwan; D015431:Weight Loss
chemical_list: D019440:Anti-Obesity Agents; D003503:Cyclobutanes; D007783:Lactones; D000077403:Orlistat; C058254:sibutramine