Epidemiology and public health

Epidemiology and treatment of obesity and diabetes

The endocrinology group focuses on the epidemiology of diabetes and obesity. This initially involved the incidence of type 1 diabetes and, more recently, has expanded to the study of the prevalence of type 2 diabetes mellitus and obesity in Spain. The group is also involved in treating obesity and following this up in the primary care setting. The Morbid Obesity Care Unit at Hospital del Mar (coordinated by Dr. Goday), a multidisciplinary team comprising professionals from endocrinology, surgery, nursing, and nutrition, focuses on the treatment of obesity from a comprehensive clinical and/or surgical approach. Our aim is to undertake an in-depth study of dietary habits in morbid obesity and how these change after bariatric surgery, as well as to study the evolution of risk factors before and after surgery. A cohort of patients who have been candidates for bariatric surgery is available for this, together with their consecutive post-surgery follow-ups.

The Endocrinology Department works in collaboration with IMIM researchers in the PREDIMED-plus study described above. In both the PREDIMEDplus study and the bariatric surgery cohort, we are looking into expanding the lifestyle intervention to the whole household.

Principal contribution: Zomeño MD, International Journal of Obsity 2020; Gortazar L, BMJ Open Diabetis Res Care 2020; Climent I, J Hypertens 2020; Benaiges D, J Clin Med 2020; Benaiges D, Endocrinol Diabetis Nutr 2020; Julià H, Obes Surg 2019; Gortazar L, Diabetis metab Res Rev 2019; Vazquez LA, Diabetis Ther 2019; Climent I, Surg Obes Relat Dis 2018; Benaiges D, Clin Invest Arterioscler 2017; Pérez-Segura P, Clin transl Oncol 2017; Climent I, Obes Surg 2017; Benaiges D, Am J Hypertens 2016; Benaiges D, Am J Hypertens 2016.