Review of current anti-obesity drugs in obese adults

Background : Obesity was a dangerous chronic disease. Physicians recommended drug therapy just in a few of obese patients in spite of many health risks. Weight control can be improved comorbidities of obesity like hyperlipedemia, hyperinsulinoma, acanthosis nigricans and hypertension. Materials and Methods: This article reviewed the available original and review literatures which had been published in English in websites of Google scholar and Pub Med with drug, obesity and adults during 2002-2014. Results: Drug therapy could improve obesity treatment after an unsuccessful combination of diet, exercise, and behaviour modification. Choice of treatment was based on multiple factors including the degree of obesity and patient preference. Drug therapy should be selected for a BMI) Body Mass Index (greater than 30 kg/m2, or a BMI of 27 kg/m2 with comorbid conditions including diabetes mellitus, hypertension, dyslipidaemia and heart disease.Prescription of anti-obesity drugs should be monitored carefully. Orlistat was the only drug for the long-term treatment of obesity. The efficacy of lorcaserin appears more than orlistat. Phentermine and diethylpropion are only approved for the short term treatment of obesity. Some antidepressant, antiepileptic, and antidiabetic drugs could be caused weight loss. New generation of anti-obesity drugs were under developing and more focus on the safety and efficacy combination treatments. Weight loss > 12kg reported in few investigational drugs. Some of them were discussed in this article. Conclusion: Obesity treatment is selected based on the side effects risks. Mostly of the available drugs have few side effects which decrease with treatment. There isn't a cure drug treatment for obesity now. © 2015, Iranian Association of Gastroenterology and Hepatology. All rights reserved.