For health care professionals

This validated, comprehensive questionnaire is a supporting screening tool for diagnosing underlying causes of overweight and obesity. The questions are science-based, developed from years of clinical experience by obesity experts. After your patient completes the questionnaire, an algorithm identifies which factors from the 7 categories of underlying causes of overweight or obesity are present:

  • Lifestyle factors (g. unhealthy eating habits, insufficient physicial activity, night shifts)
  • Socio-economic factors (g. financial concerns, loneliness, cultural habits)
  • Psychological factors (g. depression, chronic stress, abuse, binge eating disorder)
  • Medication with weight gain effects (g. corticosteroids, certain antipsychotics, certain antidepressants, certain antihypertensives)
  • Hormonal causes (g. thyroid disease, polycystyc ovarian syndrome, male hypogonadism, menopause, Cushing’s syndrome)
  • Hypothalamic causes (g. hypothalamic damage after radiation, severe head trauma, hypothalamic tumor, craniophygioma)
  • (mono)Genetic/syndromic) causes (g. mutations in MC4R, POMC, or syndromic causes such as 16p11.2 deletion syndrome)

These are translated into “red flags” pointing towards possible underlying causes or contributing/maintaining factors. This can then help you refer the patient to the appropriate care or consider additional diagnostic tests. This is important because only after properly identifying the underlying factors of obesity an effective and efficient treatment can be started. For example, starting with a lifestyle intervention is pointless if other factors, such as adjusting or replacing medication with weight-increasing side effects, addressing psychological issues, or treating a genetic cause, are not addressed simultaneously. Additionally, the tool screens for possible consequences of obesity, such as sleep apnea, osteoarthritis, and mental health issues like anxiety.

Do you have questions regarding the digital tool?

For more information regarding the digital questionnaire, you can contact: coo@erasmusmc.nl