A national survey on current clinical practice pattern of Korean Medicine doctors for treating obesity

Background and aims Given the multifactorial nature of obesity, there is current interest on Korean medicine (KM) for weight loss. This survey aimed to investigate current practice patterns of KM treatment for obesity among doctors. Methods A questionnaire on clinical practice patterns of KM treatment for obesity was constructed and distributed to 21,788 KM doctors (KMDs). The questionnaire was consisted of respondent characteristics, state of treated patient, diagnosis, treatment, and usage pattern of herbal medicine for obesity. Results A total of 4.9% of KMDs (n = 1,084/21,788) validly completed the survey. Patients with Obesity Class I (25 <= Body mass index (BMI) <= 29.9) are the most common in KM clinics. Bioelectric impedance and KM Obesity Pattern Identification Questionnaire were routinely used for diagnosis. The average treatment duration was 4.16 weeks, and patients visited on an average 4.25 times per month for treatment. Herbal medicine is the most commonly used for obesity treatment by KMDs, and Taeeumjowui-tang was the most frequently prescribed. Ephedrae Herba, which is identified as the most used herbs for weight loss, was prescribed 5.18 +/- 2.7 g/day at minimum and 10.06 +/- 4.23 g/day at maximum. A total of 62.9% of responded KMDs had ever a patient with uncomfortable symptoms due to Ephedrae Herba use, neuropsychiatric events were the most common symptoms, followed by gastrointestinal events. Conclusion Taken together, this study provides information on real clinical practice patterns of KM including patients, diagnosis, treatments, and herbal medicine for obesity.

Automated summary

This study investigated the current practice patterns of Korean medicine (KM) treatment for obesity among doctors. The results showed that patients with Obesity Class I were the most common in KM clinics, and bioelectric impedance and KM Obesity Pattern Identification Questionnaire were routinely used for diagnosis. Herbal medicine was the most commonly used treatment method, with Taeeumjowui-tang being the most frequently prescribed. Ephedrae Herba was identified as the most used herb for weight loss. The study also found that a considerable number of patients experienced uncomfortable symptoms due to the use of Ephedrae Herba.