Expert Opinion on the Utility of Telemedicine in Obesity Care: Recommendations on a Hybrid Multidisciplinary Integrated Care Follow-Up Algorithm.

PURPOSE OF REVIEW: The proposed expert opinion was prepared by a panel of obesity and law specialists from Turkey to review the utility of telemedicine in obesity care and to provide a guidance document with recommendations on a hybrid multidisciplinary integrated care follow-up algorithm and the legislation governing telemedicine practice to assist obesity specialists in practicing the telemedicine. RECENT FINDINGS: The efficacy and feasibility of telemedicine interventions in supporting obesity management programs even during pandemics confirm that obesity is a particularly well-suited field for telemedicine, emphasizing the strong likelihood of continued utilization of telemedicine in obesity management, beyond the pandemic period. Telemedicine has great potential to address several barriers to ongoing weight-management care, such as challenges of access to specialized care, cost, and time limitations as well as patient adherence to treatment. However, telemedicine practice should complement rather than replace the in-person visits which are unique in building rapport and offering social support. Accordingly, the participating experts recommend the use of a hybrid integrated care model in the management of obesity, with the use of telemedicine, as an adjunct to in-person visits, to enable the provision of suggested intensive obesity management via frequent visits by a multidisciplinary team of obesity specialists. Further research addressing the utility of telemedicine in terms of optimal modality and duration for successful long-term obesity management outcomes is necessary to develop specific guidelines on telemedicine practice. In addition, the legislation governing the norms and protocols on confidentiality, privacy, access, and liability needs to be improved.

The relationship between orthorexia nervosa and body composition in female students of the nutrition and dietetics department.

This study was carried out to determine the relationship between orthorexia nervosa (ON) and eating disorder and body composition, class level, and place of residence in university students from the Department of Nutrition and Dietetics. The participants (n = 136; 20.9 ± 2.0 years) were all female students, whose scores on the Orthorexia Nervosa Questionnaire (ORTO-11) and the Eating Attitudes Test (EAT-40) indicated a prevalence of ON and eating disorder. Assessment of body composition indices (Tanita bioelectrical impedance; SC-330) of the participants showed there to be no significant difference in the EAT-40 and ORTO-11 scores in terms of body composition, class level, and place of residence. A large majority of the participants (70.6%) had high ORTO-11 scores, and a significant negative correlation (p < 0.05) was identified between the EAT-40 and ORTO-11 scores. Final results from analysis of the data showed that although abnormal orthorexic tendencies were common among the students from the Department of Nutrition and Dietetics, they were nonetheless able to maintain body composition within normal values. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: V, cross-sectional descriptive study.

The influence of physical training modalities on basal metabolic rate and leptin on obese adolescent boys.

The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of physical training modalities on basal metabolic rate, cardiovascular fitness and serum leptin level in obese adolescent boys. Sixteen obese adolescent boys (age: 16.81 +- 0.91 years) were randomly assigned to either resistance (RTG) (n=8) or endurance (ETG) (n=8) training and followed the respective training programmes for six months (3 days/wk, 60 min/day). Leptin, basal metabolism rate (BMR), and maximum oxygen consumption (VO2max) were evaluated at the beginning and end of the intervention. After the training period, Leptin was decreased and VO2max was increased in both groups (p<0.05), whereas BMR was statistically increased only in ETG (p<0.05). These results indicated that both types of exercises had positive effects on cardiovascular fitness and hormonal control of fat metabolism in obese male adolescents. Resistance exercises should be considered as an alternative or supplementation to endurance exercises in youth obesity management.