Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Review
. 2018 Jul 22;10(7):e3021.
doi: 10.7759/cureus.3021.

Optimizing Care for Trauma Patients with Obesity

Affiliations
Review

Optimizing Care for Trauma Patients with Obesity

Sanjiv Gray et al. Cureus. .

Abstract

Obesity is a growing epidemic that has been contributing to the increasing cost of healthcare. Its prevalence is now approximately 37%. Morbid obesity is associated with increased morbidity and mortality in trauma patients. An increased recognition of obesity as a chronic disease and a better understanding of its pathophysiology can allow for proper preparation and accommodative measures to improve resuscitation and subsequent care, thereby improving trauma outcomes. The aim of this review is to provide an overview of the scope of the problem. This review also provides evidence-based recommendations for the optimal resuscitation sequence for obese patients.

Keywords: bariatrics; critical care; hypoventilation; intubation; obesity; trauma.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

The authors have declared that no competing interests exist.

Similar articles

Cited by

References

    1. Does obesity contribute to non-fatal occupational injury? Evidence from the national longitudinal survey of youth . Lin TC, Verma SK, Courtney TK. Scand J Work Environ Health. 2013;39:268–275. - PubMed
    1. The effect of preexisting conditions on mortality in trauma patients. Morris JA Jr, MacKenzie EJ, Edelstein SL. JAMA. 1990;263:1942–1946. - PubMed
    1. Pre-existing disease in trauma patients: a predictor of fate independent of age and injury severity score. Milzman DP, Boulanger BR, Rodriguez A, Soderstrom CA, Mitchell KA, Magnant CM. https://journals.lww.com/jtrauma/Abstract/1992/02000/Pre_existing_Diseas... J Trauma Acute Care Surg. 1992;32:263–244. - PubMed
    1. Obesity and increased mortality in blunt trauma. Smith-Choban P, Weireter LJ Jr, Maynes C. https://journals.lww.com/jtrauma/pages/articleviewer.aspx?year=1991&issu.... J Trauma. 1991;31:1253–1257. - PubMed
    1. Obesity is an independent risk factor for mortality in severely injured blunt trauma patients. Neville A, Brown CV, Weng J, Demetriades D, Velmahos GC. Arch Surg. 2004;139:983–987. - PubMed

LinkOut - more resources