Abstract:

Pendlebury J, Bushe CJ, Wildgust HJ, Holt RIG. Long-term maintenance of weight loss in patients with severe mental illness through a behavioural treatment programme in the UK. Objective: 

Obesity is common among people with severe mental illness (SMI). We report our experience from the first 4 years of The Cromwell House weight management clinic. Method: 

Ninety-three patients with SMI aged 43.7 ± 1.2 years referred themselves to this clinic. The patients were seen in weekly group sessions that involved weight measurement, discussion and education. Results: 

Mean baseline weight was 89.5 ± 1.8 kg [body mass index (BMI) 32.3 ± 0.5 kg/m²]. Twenty-three per cent dropped out within the first 8 weeks. There was progressive statistically significant reduction in mean weight and BMI throughout the duration of monitoring with no suggestion of a plateau. The mean final weight loss was 6.2 ± 0.6 kg. Weight loss was correlated only with the number of sessions attended (r = 0.53, P < 0.0001). Conclusion: 

Long-term weight management of obese and overweight patients with severe forms of mental illness was possible through the provision of simple lifestyle advice within the group setting.

Keywords: severe mental illness; overweight; obesity; weight management

Document Type: Research article

DOI: 10.1111/j.1600-0447.2006.00906.x

Affiliations: 1: Bolton, Salford & Trafford Mental Health NHS Trust, Manchester 2: Eli Lilly and Company Ltd, Basingstoke 3: Developmental Origins of Health and Disease Division, School of Medicine, University of Southampton, Southampton, UK