New Science at ObesityWeek: 5 Key Sessions

ObesityWeek at its core is a meeting of the best scientists in obesity research coming together with clinicians and other stakeholders. So it’s tough to pick only five key sessions where you can find some of the best new science at ObesityWeek. But here’s our best shot anyway. If you have some sessions to recommend, hit the comment button below and add them to the list!

1. Tuesday: ASMBS Top 10 Papers. The American Society for Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery makes it easy. They sift though all the papers submitted for their portion of the ObesityWeek agenda and pack the top ten papers into two sessions on Monday. In those sessions you’ll find everything from basic science to clinical outcomes studies. Results from a new sham-controlled study of the new dual gastric balloon will be one of the highlights. Click here and here for more information.
    
2. Tuesday: Pharmacotherapy and Metabolic Effects of Energy Imbalance. ObesityWeek is brimming throughout the week with new data on the effectiveness and safety of obesity drugs. This particular session has a strong concentration with presentations on lorcaserin and liragulutide, along with data on the metabolic effects of dietary interventions. Elsewhere in the meeting you’ll find data on the other new drug treatments — phentermine/topirimate and bupropion/naltrexone. Click here for more information.
    
3. Wednesday: CNS Consequences of Dietary or Surgical Manipulations. Some of the most important clues for a deeper understanding of obesity and thus better treatments lies in the central nervous system. This session will present important new data on how dietary factors and bariatric surgery affect the central nervous system in helpful and not so helpful ways. Click here for more information.
    
4. Thursday: Interactions Between Gut Peptides, Taste, and Bariatric Surgery in Obesity. This session will dig even deeper into how bariatric surgery interacts with the body’s biggest endocrine organ — the gut — to bring changes in taste, appetite, and weight. Click here for more information.
    
5. Friday: Neurological Basis of Food Reward. New data on the neurobiology of food’s rewarding qualities are building the knowledge base for addictive aspects of obesity. Click here for more information.

 
Moon Over Boston photograph © Werner Kunz / flickr

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