USPSTF Recommends Intense Counseling for Overweight Patients at High CV Risk

By Kelly Young

Edited by David G. Fairchild, MD, MPH

The U.S. Preventive Services Task Force recommends intense behavioral counseling for adults who are overweight or obese and have at least one other cardiovascular risk factor (B recommendation). The guideline appears in the Annals of Internal Medicine.

The recommendation applies to adults with a BMI of 25 or greater who also have hypertension, dyslipidemia, impaired fasting glucose, or metabolic syndrome.

The task force evaluated studies on counseling interventions that promoted healthy diet and physical activity. Interventions involved an average of 5 to 16 contacts with patients, including individual or group sessions and telephone contacts, over 9 to 12 months.

The group says that primary care providers could use two interventions — the Diabetes Prevention Program and PREMIER — as models for behavioral counseling.