Analysis of the trend in obesity incidence among the working-age population

Introduction. Obesity is one of the socially significant chronic non-communicable diseases and, according to numerous forecasts, the incidence of obesity may increase several times by 2030.

Purpose of study. To analyze the primary and general morbidity of obesity and assess its relationship with the coefficient of availability of medical staff and the incidence of coronary heart disease among the working-age population over ten years on the example of the Saratov region.

Materials and methods. Based on the data from the State Health Institution “Medical Information and Analytical Center” of Saratov, the trend indices of general and primary morbidity of obesity among the working-age population in the Saratov region over 10 years (2013–2022) were analyzed.

Results. The overall obesity incidence in Saratov increased by 6.8%, in the Saratov region — by 22.2%; the primary morbidity increased by 53.3% and 81.4%, respectively. A correlation was established between the primary and general morbidity of obesity in Saratov: r = 0.63, p = 0.04; between the general morbidity in Saratov and the Saratov region: r = 0.68, p = 0.03. In all districts of the region, no correlation was found between the indices of general and primary morbidity of obesity and coronary heart disease: r = –0.13; p = 0.45 and r = 0.3; p = 0.07, respectively. The relationship between the coefficient of availability of medical staff and the incidence of obesity has not been established.

Research limitations. The study has regional (Saratov region) and age (adult population) restrictions.

Conclusion. To find out additional reasons for the insufficient detectability of obesity, it is advisable to conduct additional studies aimed at studying the level of awareness of primary care physicians, as well as the working-age population living in the Saratov region, about the role of obesity in the development and course of other diseases. An important area of research may be the search for external objective factors that cause different levels of obesity prevalence within the same group of districts formed taking into account the coefficients of availability of medical staff.

Compliance with ethical standards. The study does not require submission the opinion of the biomedical ethics committee or other documents.

Contribution of the authors:
Dolich V.N. — writing the text;
Komleva N.E. — writing the text, editing;
Lyapina E.P. — writing the text, editing;
Mazilov S.I. — statistical data processing;
Pozdnyakov M.V. — the collection and processing of the material;
Zaikina I.V. — the collection and processing of the material;
Chekhonatskiy А.А. — the collection and processing of the material.
All coauthors — approval of the final version of the article, responsibility for the integrity of all parts of the article.

Acknowledgment. The study had no sponsorship.

Conflict of interest. The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Received: June 26, 2024 / Accepted: October 3, 2024 / Published: December 28, 2024