Comparing medical and surgical weight-loss options in everyday care
Novel approaches to improve comparative effectiveness research of medical and surgical weight reduction strategies in clinical practice
Researchers are creating methods that use routine health records to compare how safe and effective weight-loss medicines and surgeries are for adults with obesity, including people with type 2 diabetes.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R01 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Brigham and Women's Hospital NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Boston, United States) |
| Project ID | NIH-11296872 on NIH RePORTER |
What this research studies
If you have obesity or adult-onset diabetes, this project will use large health insurance and medical record databases from millions of people to look at outcomes after prescription weight-loss drugs or bariatric surgery. Because body mass index (BMI) is often missing in claims data, the team will develop ways to estimate or recover BMI and to account for other differences between patients so comparisons are fair. They will test statistical methods to reduce bias and improve confidence in real-world findings. The aim is to produce trustworthy evidence from routine care that complements what clinical trials tell us.
Who could benefit from this research
Good fit: Adults with obesity, including those with type 2 (adult-onset) diabetes or those considering prescription weight-loss medications or bariatric surgery, are the main focus.
Not a fit: Children, people without linked insurance or medical records, and those seeking personalized medical advice rather than population-level evidence may not directly benefit from this work.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: Could help patients and clinicians choose safer and more effective weight-loss medications or surgeries based on large-scale real-world outcomes.
How similar studies have performed: Other real-world studies using claims and registry data have identified safety and effectiveness trends for drugs, but applying robust methods to handle missing BMI and confounding in weight-loss comparisons is relatively new.
Where this research is happening
Boston, United States
- Brigham and Women's Hospital — Boston, United States (Active)
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Patorno, Elisabetta — Brigham and Women's Hospital
- Study coordinator: Patorno, Elisabetta
About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page below.