ABSTRACT
A. C. DUBUISSON, F. R. ZECH, M. M. DASSY, N. B. JODOGNE, and V. M. BEAULOYE
12.1 INTRODUCTION
Childhood obesity has spread dramatically over the previous decades. To curtail this major health issue, long-term effective weight control programs are essential. In the short term, several studies have shown positive and encouraging outcomes of multidisciplinary approach for childhood obesity. A combination of dietary, physical activity and behavioural interventions compared to standard care or self-help can produce a significant and clinically meaningful reduction in obesity in children and adolescents [1, 2]. This highlights the importance of multidisciplinary programs as the best first-line treatment. However, in most studies, programs are limited to between 6 and 12 months of duration, and beneficial effects are partly lost from 6 to 12 months after completion [3], especially for severely obese children [4]. Long-term follow-up studies of paediatric obesity interventions show a mean 10% reduction in relative weight but also substantial relapse [5, 6]. As obesity is a chronic disease, the question of the need of a chronic care program is raised [7]. Whether the continuation of the program will still be beneficial and how to implement this in a real-life situation remains to be answered.
