Healthy Weight Awareness Center
Center helps Philadelphia's children combat obesity
Healthy Weight Awareness Center offers medical, surgical treatments and after-school support
In response to the nation's current childhood obesity epidemic, the Healthy Weight Awareness Center at St. Christopher's Hospital for Children offers a comprehensive and multi-disciplinary program for children at risk or already affected by co-morbid conditions associated with being overweight.
According to the Philadelphia Department of Public Health, obesity is increasing among the city's teenage population. In 1999, ten percent of girls and nine percent of boys were overweight. Two years later, those percentages had increased to 12 percent and 19 percent respectively.
The Healthy Weight Awareness Center identifies potential weight problems in children and adolescents and determines medical, and possibly surgical treatments, to suit each patient's needs. "The best treatment for obesity is early recognition and intervention at a younger age," said Dr. Kathy Chen, pediatric gastroenterologist and medical director, Healthy Weight Awareness Center.
The Healthy Weight Awareness Center at St. Christopher's Hospital for Children applies a multi-disciplinary approach to treating pediatric obesity offering:
A medically supervised approach to evaluating and establishing treatment plans for significantly obese patients
A multi-disciplinary team consisting of pediatric gastroenterologists, pediatricians, pediatric surgeons, nutrition specialists, nursing staff and practitioners, social workers and child life specialists
Referrals to sub-specialists for individual medical and surgical complications including endocrinology, pulmonary, surgery, orthopedics, cardiology and physical therapy
Weight management clinics held in conjunction with the hospital's Program for Bariatric Surgery*
The center's after-school programs include:
Way to Go Kids! Directed by a nutritionist, physical therapist and social worker to educate about nutrition and exercise, these eight-week classes are open to referred children and adolescents. Family participation is required.
Melt-Aways: Directed by a social worker and nurse practitioner, this weight management support group is held every third Tuesday evening and is open to adolescents and families.
In April 2004, St. Christopher's Hospital for Children began to perform gastric bypass surgery (bariatric) on children between 16 and 18 years of age.
"Only after traditional dietary measures have failed is a patient considered a candidate for bariatric surgery," said Dr. Christine Finck, pediatric surgeon and surgical director, Healthy Weight Awareness Center. "And even then, patients must meet strict criteria including being twice their ideal body weight, undergoing psychological evaluation, showing inadequate weight loss after six months of treatment and have the presence of co-morbid conditions such as hypertension."
Pediatric surgeons at St. Christopher's Hospital for Children have been speciall trained to perform surgical treatment for obesity in adolescent cases where medical management alone fails. Each patient is treated individually. St. Christopher's Hospital for children is a participating institution in the National Follow Up of Adolescent Bariatric Sugery multi-instutional trail. Adolescents who qualify for surgery receive intensive treatment, both before and after the surgery, including dietary modifications and exercise.
For more information about the Healthy Weight Awareness Center at St. Christopher's Hospital for Children, please call (215) 427-8338.
* To be considered a surgical candidate in the surgical weight management program at St. Christopher's Hospital for Children, the patient must be at least 16 years of age and be considered severely obese, weighing at least two times the ideal body weight. Other criteria must also be met and will be discussed during the surgical consultation. A non-surgical weight management program for pediatric pateints of all ages is available for those not meeting the criteria for surgical weight management .
Kathy D. Chen, M.D.
Medical Director
Christine Finck, M.D.
Surgical Director
Childhood Obesity Hospital