The Development of Behavioral Modification Program on Weight Reduction in Overweight Patients taking Atypical Antipsychotics: Preliminary Study

ABSTRACT

OBJECTS SThe authors developed a behavioral modification program for overweight outpatients with schizophrenia and bipolar disorder who had been treated with atypical antipsychotics, and evaluated the applicability of this program to outpatients. METHODS: Two men and nine women who had been treated with atypical antipsychotics and who had gained at least 5 percent of their pre-treatment body weight for 10 weeks, attended a behavioral modification program. The patients' weight, body mass index and the diet-activity scale were assessed and were compared with those of a matched comparison group who did not attend the behavioral modification program. RESULTS: The body weight of patients who attended the behavioral modification program reduced with statistical significance. The treatment group showed significant improvement in diet-related items but not in activity-related items of the diet-activity scale. CONCLUSIONS: This study suggested the applicability of a behavioral modification program on weight reduction to overweight patients taking atypical antipsychotics for the first time in Korea. Additional large scale studies are needed to validate the effectiveness of this program.