Pediatric obesity guidelines serve as toolkit for treating patients with obesity

The Obesity Medicine Association today released guidelines on pediatric obesity care for healthcare professionals who make decisions for pediatric patients with obesity. In a project led by Dr. Suzanne Cuda, associate professor of pediatrics at Baylor College of Medicine and pediatrician at The Children's Hospital of San Antonio, the guidelines were developed by practicing pediatricians and clinicians and provide clinicians a toolkit to guide them through diagnosis, management and treatment of infants, children and adolescents with obesity.

"The guidelines are structured to provide information on how to handle pediatric patients with obesity according to their age at presentation," said Cuda. "They include nutritional approaches, activity recommendations, pharmacotherapy as well as other recommendations."

The guidelines, titled the Pediatric Obesity Algorithm, are intended to educate clinicians and help them translate medical and scientific literature into practical approaches that work.

They were compiled using scientific evidence, medical literature and the clinical experiences of practicing pediatricians and clinicians and will be updated and modified every two years.

The Pediatric Obesity Algorithm can be downloaded at www.PediatricObesityAlgorithm.org .