Active clinical trials for "Obesity"

The purpose of this study was to examine the dynamic lung volumes in obese post-menopausal women (without hormone replacement therapy) during exercise and their correlations with dyspnea.

Obesity is a national epidemic with multiple causes and complex solutions. Research in both animals and humans has suggested that the inclusion of dairy foods into a moderate calorie restricted diet can increase weight loss and fat loss. Our proposed project extends these prior findings by determining, for the first time, how inclusion of dairy in a calorie-restricted diet changes the amount of visceral adiposity in overweight and obese subjects. The investigators also propose unique studies to evaluate the potential mechanism(s) by which dairy promotes weight and fat loss during dieting, through an examination of adipocyte size, gene expression, and inflammatory markers. The hypotheses under investigation are (1) that inclusion of dairy foods in a modest energy restricted diet will significantly increase body fat loss compared to a control diet; (2) that dairy products in a modest energy restricted diet will result in greater fat loss from intra-abdominal adipose tissue compared to the control, 3) components of dairy products up- or down-regulate the secretion of metabolically-relevant hormones during the postprandial and inter-meal periods, 4) dairy products will promote satiety and/or satiation, 5) dairy foods reduce adipocyte differentiation and/or enhance adipocyte apoptosis, leading to concomitant white adipose tissue (WAT) expression changes for genes playing a role in these processes, 6) dairy foods will reduce adipocyte lipid storage and enhance pathways associated with thermogenesis and mitochondrial function in WAT, as reflected in gene expression changes and reduced adipocyte size, and 7) dairy foods included in a modest energy restricted diet will decrease inflammation in WAT and other tissues, thus decreasing circulating cytokines, increasing zinc status, decreasing expression of inflammatory markers in WAT, and reducing WAT macrophage infiltration.

Rationale: Obesity is an increasing childhood epidemic in Canada. Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is a complication of obesity which causes cardiovascular disease, reduced quality of life, and premature death. While the complex interactions between obesity and OSA are not entirely clear, we hypothesize that these conditions may compound each other by: decreasing physical activity and total energy expenditure by reducing both non-exercise physical pursuits (NEAT- non-exercise activity thermogenesis) and purposeful physical activity. alterations in the secretion of appetite-controlling hormones, which may lead to increases in energy intake. Objective: To determine whether the presence of both obesity and OSA in children is associated with a decrease in physical activity and alterations in appetite-regulating hormones greater than those seen in either condition alone or compared to controls. Methods: Comparison of children 10-17 years with obesity and OSA, obesity alone, OSA alone and neither condition, for the following outcomes: (1) NEAT (kcal/day) (2) Physical activity behavior, appetite regulating hormone profile and self-report appetite assessment. Unique Aspects: This study combines expertise in sleep medicine, exercise physiology and obesity. Conclusions from this study will better characterize this high-risk clinical population so that innovative strategies targeting improvements in lifestyle behaviors can be developed.

Asthma is a common, long-term disease that is caused by inflammation of the airways. Inflammation also plays a role in obesity and may affect the way a person responds to asthma medication. This study will examine the relationship between obesity and inflammation and the effect they have on response to corticosteroid asthma medications.

Despite progress in understanding the pathophysiology of obesity, current strategies for its medical management remain largely ineffective. Most efforts have focused on reducing caloric intake or increasing energy expenditure, either through behavior modification (e.g. dieting, regular exercise) alone, or augmented by pharmacologic efforts to decrease appetite, inhibit fat absorption, or alter metabolism. Bariatric surgery remains the only proven long term treatment of morbid obesity. Super morbidly obese (SMO: Body Mass Index (BMI) > 50) and super super morbidly obese (SSMO: BMI > 60) patients lose considerable weight, but stabilize at Body Mass Indexes (BMIs) that are still obese or even morbidly obese after risking considerable morbidity and/or mortality. Among commonly performed bariatric surgeries, a laparoscopic two-stage procedure, in which an initial restrictive procedure is followed after a weight loss of ~100 lbs by a more complex procedure that creates malabsorption, is gaining interest. Initial studies have demonstrated very good long-term weight loss with minimal morbidity, and no operative mortality in these high risk patients. Availability of biospecimens obtained at each stage of this protocol will allow participating scientists a unique opportunity to test in human tissues hypotheses developed in animals. Studies proposed under this application focus on fatty acids and overall fat disposition in fat depots (adipose tissue) of your body, and the role of adipose tissue hormones and inflammatory processes in obesity and its associated health related issues.

The purpose of the study is to determine if giving isosorbide,a drug that is used to treat chest pain, affects blood vessel release of an anti-clotting factor.

Prior studies examining the pharmacokinetics, safety, and efficacy of the new etonogestrel-containing single rod implantable contraceptive device, Implanon, did not include women who exceeded 130% of ideal body weight. Yet, as these women comprise a significant portion of the U.S. population, studies of Implanon in obese women are essential. The proposed study represents an important first step in addressing the lack of data on Implanon in obese women. We aim to examine the pharmacokinetics of Implanon in obese women during the first 6 months of use and to provide data on the acceptability, side effect profile, and ease of insertion, palpation, and removal in these women. We also aim to collect samples for future validation studies of the use of the blood spot (finger-stick blood sample on filter paper) as a method of determining plasma etonogestrel.

The purpose of this registry is to monitor and evaluate the efficacy, as well as safety, of bariatric surgery performed at UMass Memorial Medical Center, including laparoscopic gastric bypass surgery and laparoscopic gastric banding, in the surgical treatment of morbid obesity and associated co-morbidities such as type 2 diabetes, sleep apnea and cardiovascular disease.

This study compares the improvement of weight, fasting lipid profile (triglycerides, cholesterol, HDL, and LDL) and diabetes after gastric bypass surgery with an improvement in levels of an enzyme called glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase (G6PD).

The purpose of this retrospective pilot study is to address the effect that obesity, in the absence of other comorbidities, has on birth weight. We wish to determine if obesity is a risk factor for small for gestational age (SGA) or intrauterine growth restricted (IUGR) infants in our clinic population. There have been many studies linking maternal obesity with fetal macrosomia, defined as fetal birth weight greater than 4500 grams. However, we have noted that a percentage of our obese patient population has delivered either an SGA or IUGR infant. SGA refers to a constitutionally small infant weighing less than the 10th percentile for age. This refers to a genetically normal infant. IUGR refers to a fetus whose growth has been restricted by influences other than normal genetics. Our study population will consist of all women over the age 18 who delivered a term infant either by vaginal delivery or cesarean section at Tulsa Regional Medical Center between July 1st 2004 and December 31st 2005. The diagnosis of obesity will be based upon a Body Mass Index (weight in kilograms/height in meters squared) of thirty or greater. We will look at the infant birth weight as recorded in the patient's chart. We will define SGA or IUGR as birth weight less than the 10th percentile for gestational age as defined previously. The control group will consist of women meeting the same criteria except they will have a BMI less than thirty but greater than 19.8 as low maternal weight is also a risk factor for IUGR. We will compare the average birth weight and the rates of SGA/IUGR infants between the two groups and analyze using the chi-squared method of analysis.