Studies Show Some Doctors Have Bias Against Obese

[The Straight Story]

Studies Show Some Doctors Have Bias Against Obese

COLUMBUS, Ohio-- Shocking studies show that your doctor could have a bias against obese and overweight patients.

Target 4's Patrick Preston tells one woman's story, saying it's proof that some doctors need an attitude adjustment.

After two pregnancies and years of battling her weight, Westerville mother Becky Johnson developed hip pain so sharp that she had to crawl up the stairs.

"It was excruciating," she said. "This was a worse pain than giving birth."

A trip to a specialist followed -- one who told Johnson the cure was simple: lose 100 pounds.

...

But Johnson saw it differently. Frustrated by the experience,she went to a second doctor who diagnosed her condition as Bursitis -- an inflammation of her fluid sacs.

http://www.nbc4i.com/midwest/cmh/news.apx.-content-articles-CMH-2008-02-06-0030.html

[maxsolomon]

1. both were right. losing weight would help the bursitis.

http://www.emedicine.com/pmr/topic104.htm

Pes anserine bursitis is an inflammatory condition of the medial knee, especially common in certain patient populations, often coexisting with other knee disorders.

In a descriptive study of 94 diabetic patients, pes anserine bursitis was reported in 91% of diabetic women and 9% of diabetic men. Among affected women with diabetes, 62% had the disease bilaterally. No subjects in a control group had bursitis without diabetes. Pes anserine bursitis is associated with obesity, and the diabetic patients in the study had greater body mass than the controls on average. Researchers, however, reported that body mass alone did not explain the higher incidence of bursitis among individuals with diabetes.

[Warpy]

2. Yeah, they do. So do nurses, but for a more practical reason

One 400 pound patient sent me to 6 weeks of rehab and 2 coworkers for back surgery, mostly because the hospital was too cheap to provide us with the equipment and staff we needed to shift someone that massive.

However, when a doc knows my history and that my obesity is Cushing's syndrome from years of Prednisone, and sees what I can still do in terms of flexibility before the back spasms set in, he's no longer particularly prejudiced.

[melody]

3. No! Really? What a surprise!

Ask any fat person ... the younger ones tend to be more aware, but the older ones carry around the same old prejudice.

[woodsprite]

4. It's very rampant. I have a friend who ran into it with her drs nurse.

My friend has had a thryoid issue her whole life. She is physically fit, eats right, but cannot lose a substantial amount of weight and keep it stable. The only thing she hasn't done was the surgery and both her and her dr. think it is too risky since she is otherwise healthy and fit.

The new nurse was giving her a fit, making comments that her kids were probably obese too and she should be ashamed since she was such an unfit person to be a mother. My friend tried to explain politely about how she really does have an ongoing physical issue and her kids are normal 50th percentile average healthy kids. She told her she is healthy and fit going to the gym regularly, to which the nurse made some other remark. It all devolved to my friend challenging said skinny-mini nurse to push-ups, wall-squats and a third thing (can't remember that). My friend beat her in all! :)

The doc came out when they were doing push-ups and wanted to know what was going on. The nurse told him a bit, my friend filled him in the rest of the way. His comment? "Oh, she's gonna whup your ass. She works out at my gym regularly." Last time my friend went to the docs, that nurse wasn't there anymore!

[Missy Vixen]

5. Color me shocked

I've dealt with it for years. My favorite story was when I broke one of my toes, complete with bleeding under the skin. The doctor in question told me I was too fat to cast. My response? "Seahawks players outweigh me by quite a bit. Would you cast one of them?" I asked for my patient file on the way out the door, and never went back.

The only solution I've found is to leave any practice that a doctor (or anyone in his or her office,) treats me with anything less than courtesy and professionalism. It's all I'm asking for.

The doctor I have now is fabulous. He's nowhere near my size, but he carries a few extra pounds. I think this may help him be a bit more compassionate, as well as offering outstanding care.

Julie

[melody]

6. I had a gynecologist refuse to treat me because of my weight

That's only the tip of the iceberg.

Obsessive compulsive personalities see us and project. Doctors tend to be obsessive compulsive personalities (so do writers and I am one, so it's not a knock, just a fact).

[earth mom]

7. Not surprised by this.

What happened to the oath these doctors took?! :thumbsdown: