Burden of long‐term conditions and management of people with overweight and obesity: Data from the United Kingdom primary care cohort of the <scp>IMPACT</scp> ‐O study

What is the context and purpose of this research study? Health-related information recorded in electronic medical records during visits to your doctor can help increase understanding of the impact of overweight and obesity in healthcare settings. What was done? The epIdeMiology landscape and PAtient Care paThways of Obesity (IMPACT-O) was a study conducted in selected countries in Europe and the Asia-Pacific region that used information from existing healthcare records to report the impact of overweight and obesity. This paper reports the results from the UK part of the study, using information provided by general practitioners. Data on social, demographic and health-related characteristics of people with overweight and obesity were collected for adults (at least 18 years of age) at the time their first record of overweight or obesity was recorded, either with a diagnosis from the doctor or a body mass index (BMI) of ≥25 kg/m² (overweight/obesity group) or ≥30 kg/m² (obesity group) and for adults with at least one record indicating the use of a method for weight loss (intervention cohort). What were the main results? Most adults included in the study had at least one additional condition that was related to their obesity, and more people in the obesity group than the overweight/obesity group had an additional obesity-related condition. The most commonly recorded additional obesity-related condition was high blood pressure in the obesity group and depression in the overweight/obesity group. In the group who had a method of weight loss recorded, three in every four adults had at least one additional obesity-related condition. The average BMI of adults in this group was 29.0 kg/m². Lifestyle changes, such as diet and exercise, were recorded for nearly all adults in this group, followed by medications with an effect on weight (such as glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonists and orlistat), and weight-loss surgery. What is the originality and relevance of this study? The study results confirm that adults are already heavily affected by obesity-related conditions by the time of their first formal documentation of overweight or obesity in primary care. Only a small number of adults with overweight or obesity had records of medication or surgery for weight loss management. These results mean that there is a need for improved surveillance of these adults in the UK.