The American journal of medicine
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Randomized Controlled Trial Multicenter Study
The long-term effectiveness of a lifestyle intervention in severely obese individuals.
Severe obesity (body mass index [BMI] ≥40 kg/m(2)) is a serious public health concern. Although bariatric surgery is an efficacious treatment approach, it is limited in reach; thus, nonsurgical treatment alternatives are needed. We examined the 4-year effects of an intensive lifestyle intervention on body weight and cardiovascular disease risk factors among severely obese, compared with overweight (25 ≤BMI <30), class I (30 ≤BMI <35), and class II obese (35 ≤BMI <40) participants. ⋯ Lifestyle interventions can result in important long-term weight losses and improvements in cardiovascular disease risk factors among a significant proportion of severely obese individuals.
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Pulmonary embolism places a heavy economic burden on health care systems, but the components of hospital cost have not been elucidated. We evaluated hospitalized patients with the primary diagnosis of pulmonary embolism. Our goal was to determine the total and component costs associated with their hospital care. ⋯ Pulmonary embolism has a high case fatality rate and remains an expensive illness to diagnose and treat. Nursing costs comprise the largest component of costs.