title: Maintenance of weight loss or stability in subjects with obesity: a retrospective longitudinal analysis of a real-world population.
abstract: Characterize patterns of weight change among subjects with obesity.
  
  
  
  A retrospective observational longitudinal study of subjects with obesity was conducted using the General Electric Centricity electronic medical record database. Subjects who were ≥18 years old with BMI ≥30 kg/m2(first defining index BMI), had no medical conditions associated with unintentional weight loss, and had ≥4 BMI measurements/year for ≥2.5 years were included and categorized into groups (stable weight: within <5% of index BMI; modest weight loss: ≥5 to <10% of index BMI lost; moderate weight loss: ≥10 to <15% of index BMI lost; and high weight loss: ≥15% of index BMI lost) based on weight change during 6 months following index. No interventions were considered. Patterns of weight change were then assessed for 2 years.
  
  
  
  A total of 177,743 subjects were included: 85.1% of subjects were in the stable weight, 9.3% in the modest, 2.3% in the moderate, and 3.3% in the high weight loss groups. The proportion of subjects who maintained or continued to lose weight decreased over the 2 year observation period; 11% of those with high weight loss continued to lose weight and 19% maintained their weight loss. This group had the lowest percentage of subjects who regained ≥50% of lost weight and the lowest proportion of subjects with weight cycling (defined as not continuously losing, gaining, or maintaining weight throughout the 2 year observation period relative to its beginning). This trend persisted in subgroups with class II-III obesity, pre-diabetes, and type 2 diabetes.
  
  
  
  Weight cycling and regain were commonly observed. Subjects losing the most weight during the initial period were more likely to continue losing weight.
authors.affiliation: a Analysis Group Inc. , Boston , MA , USA.
authors.forename: Maral
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: DerSarkissian
authors.affiliation: a Analysis Group Inc. , Boston , MA , USA.
authors.forename: Rachel H
authors.initials: RH
authors.lastname: Bhak
authors.affiliation: b Employed with Novo Nordisk Inc. when this research was conducted.
authors.forename: Joanna
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Huang
authors.affiliation: b Employed with Novo Nordisk Inc. when this research was conducted.
authors.forename: Sarah
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Buchs
authors.affiliation: a Analysis Group Inc. , Boston , MA , USA.
authors.forename: Francis
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Vekeman
authors.affiliation: c Novo Nordisk Inc. , Plainsboro , NJ , USA.
authors.forename: B Gabriel
authors.initials: BG
authors.lastname: Smolarz
authors.affiliation: c Novo Nordisk Inc. , Plainsboro , NJ , USA.
authors.forename: Jason
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Brett
authors.affiliation: c Novo Nordisk Inc. , Plainsboro , NJ , USA.
authors.forename: Rahul
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Ganguly
authors.affiliation: a Analysis Group Inc. , Boston , MA , USA.
authors.forename: Mei Sheng
authors.initials: MS
authors.lastname: Duh
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D015992:Body Mass Index; D001835:Body Weight; D003924:Diabetes Mellitus, Type 2 / Q000453:epidemiology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008137:Longitudinal Studies; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009765:Obesity / Q000453:epidemiology*; D011236:Prediabetic State / Q000453:epidemiology; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D015431:Weight Loss
keywords: BMI; Obesity; Weight loss; Weight maintenance