Ann Silk, is an MD. She is worried about her overweight patients because they are much harder to diagnose due to the fatty tissue on their bodies. Just taking the blood pressure of an obese patient means you have to have a bigger blood pressure cuff. It is often hard to even weigh patients as regular scales max out at 350 lbs making it impossible to know the patients true weight.
Fat definitely makes a doctors job much tougher.
- excess body fat can make it difficult to assess thyroid, liver health or recognize abnormal growths
- the exam will be more lengthy and sometimes painful because the doctor has to press so hard to get through the fat tissue
It is hard enough to get a bad diagnosis from a doctor, but even worse if it was missed. Being obese can kill you, either by obesity related conditions OR a missed diagnosis because of the obesity.
Filed under: Weight Loss