Inpatient Morbid Obesity Treatment

Inpatient weight loss programs involve a stay of several weeks or months in a hospital or facility committed to assisting obese or morbidly obese patients with weight control. Qualified staff members study and monitor the patient. Programs may include bariatric surgery, a low calorie diet, weight loss drugs, physical therapy, exercise and psychotherapy.

Study and Monitoring

In all programs, patients are monitored for vital signs and weight loss. Sometimes, doctors and research scientists monitor body mass index and muscle to fat ratios and perform other tests.

Bariatric Surgery

National Institutes of Health statistics show the demand for weight loss surgery has skyrocketed in the past 12 years. There was a nine-fold increase in the total number of bariatric surgeries between 1998 and 2004.

Low Calorie Diet

Patients may be placed on a liquid or solid food diet of less than 1,000 calories per day, at least for the first portion of the program.

Weight Loss Drugs

Prescription weight loss medications may be considered for longterm treatment of morbid obesity, but only as a supplement to diet and exercise.

Physical Therapy and Exercise

Physical therapists focus on safe and efficient movement; flexibility, balance, strength, and endurance; improvement of pain; and independence in obese patients. Trained exercise specialists start patients at their current fitness levels and help develop a plan that can be maintained at home.

Psychotherapy

Psychological support may be necessary in order to help patients deal with postoperative stress and to find ways to handle underlying psychological, psychosocial and environmental problems.