Pharmacological approaches to intervention.

Obesity is a major health concern which must be treated. The classical treatment strategies of diet, behavioural modification and exercise have been found to be ineffective for maintaining long-term weight loss. Drugs have been used to try and improve long-term maintenance of weight loss. Such drugs act centrally, peripherally, or via a combination of these effects. The aim has generally been to increase satiety, thermogenesis, or both. For a drug to be an effective anti-obesity agent, it must meet a number of criteria. The drug should reduce weight and weight dependent diseases, and have no addictive properties. In addition, any side-effects should be tolerable and/or transient, and the mechanism of action of the drug should be known. Studies have shown that pharmacotherapy, combined with classical treatment strategies, has improved the long-term maintenance of weight loss.