The effect of bariatric surgery on health care costs: A synthetic control approach using Bayesian structural time series.

Surgical measures to combat obesity are very effective in terms of weight loss, recovery from diabetes, and improvement in cardiovascular risk factors. However, previous studies found both positive and negative results regarding the effect of bariatric surgery on health care utilization. Using claims data from the largest health insurance provider in Germany, we estimated the causal effect of bariatric surgery on health care costs in a time period ranging from 2 years before to 3 years after bariatric intervention.

Do adolescents with extreme obesity differ according to previous treatment seeking behavior? The Youth with Extreme obesity Study (YES) cohort.

Objectives: Adolescent extreme obesity is associated with somatic and psychiatric comorbidity, low quality of life, and social dysfunction. Nevertheless, few adolescents seek obesity treatment, thus many may elope appropriate care. We examine whether previous treatment seeking relates to disease burden, and whether previously non-treatment seeking adolescents accept diagnostic and therapeutic offers.

Prices of over-the-counter drugs used by 15-year-old adolescents in Germany and their association with socioeconomic background.

Background: In Germany, over-the-counter (OTC) drugs are normally reimbursed up to the age of 12 years only. The aim of this study was to analyse prices of over-the-counter drugs used by adolescents in Germany and their association with socioeconomic factors.

Methods: Based on the German GINIplus and LISAplus birth cohorts, data on drug utilization among 15-year-old adolescents (n = 4677) were collected using a self-administered questionnaire.

The Non-Linear Relationship between BMI and Health Care Costs and the Resulting Cost Fraction Attributable to Obesity.

This study aims to analyse the non-linear relationship between Body Mass Index (BMI) and direct health care costs, and to quantify the resulting cost fraction attributable to obesity in Germany. Five cross-sectional surveys of cohort studies in southern Germany were pooled, resulting in data of 6757 individuals (31-96 years old). Self-reported information on health care utilisation was used to estimate direct health care costs for the year 2011.

A Structured, Manual-Based Low-Level Intervention vs. Treatment as Usual Evaluated in a Randomized Controlled Trial for Adolescents with Extreme Obesity - the STEREO Trial.

Background: To compare efficacy and safety of a manual-based low-level psychological intervention with treatment as usual (weight loss treatment).

Methods: A two-armed randomized controlled trial without blinding and computer-based stratified block randomization included adolescents and young adults (14.0-24.

The Economic Burden of Obesity in Germany: Results from the Population-Based KORA Studies.

Objective: To estimate the excess costs of obese compared to normal-weight persons in Germany based on self-reported resource utilisation and work absence.

Methods: Five cross sectional surveys of cohort studies in southern Germany were pooled resulting in 9,070 observations for 6,731 individuals (31-96 years). BMI was measured in the study centre.

The association between physical activity and healthcare costs in children--results from the GINIplus and LISAplus cohort studies.

Background: Physical inactivity in children is an important risk factor for the development of various morbidities and mortality in adulthood, physical activity already has preventive effects during childhood. The objective of this study is to estimate the association between physical activity, healthcare utilization and costs in children.

Methods: Cross-sectional data of 3356 children aged 9 to 12 years were taken from the 10-year follow-up of the birth cohort studies GINIplus and LISAplus, including information on healthcare utilization and physical activity given by parents via self-administered questionnaires.

Patterns of complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) use in children: a systematic review.

Unlabelled: Utilization of complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) among children/adolescents is popular. This review summarizes the international findings for prevalence and predictors of CAM use among children/adolescents. We therefore systematically searched four electronic databases (PubMed, Embase, PsycINFO, AMED; last update in 07/2013) and reference lists of existing reviews and all included studies.

Healthcare use and costs associated with children's behavior problems.

The objective of the study was to investigate associations between severity of behavior problems, specific symptom domains with healthcare use and costs in school-aged children. A cross-sectional study using data from the 10-year follow-up of two population-based birth cohorts was conducted on four rural and urban communities in Germany. There were 3,579 participants [1,834 boys (51%), 1,745 girls (49%)] on average aged 10.

Impact of BMI and BMI change on future drug expenditures in adults: results from the MONICA/KORA cohort study.

Background: The evidence on the long-term economic effects of obesity is still scarce. This study aims to analyse the impact of body mass index (BMI) and BMI-change on future pharmaceutical utilisation and expenditures.

Methods: Based on data from 2,946 participants in a German population-based health survey (MONICA/KORA, 1994/95) and the follow-up study (2004/05), drug intake and expenditures were estimated using a bottom-up approach.

Development of BMI values of German children and their healthcare costs.

The aim of this study is to assess the association between different patterns of Body Mass Index (BMI) development from birth on and later healthcare utilisation and costs in children aged about 10 years based on two birth cohort studies: the GINIplus study (3287 respondents) and the LISAplus study (1762 respondents). Direct costs were estimated using information on healthcare utilisation given by parents in the 10-year follow-up. To meet this aim, we (i) estimate BMI-standard deviation score (BMIZ) trajectories using latent growth mixture models and (ii) examine the correlation between these trajectories and utilisation of healthcare services and resulting costs at the 10-year follow-up.

Combating pediatric obesity in Germany: the role of economic findings in informing policy.

As in most countries, overweight and obesity among children and adolescents have dramatically increased in Germany over the last two decades. This serious public-health challenge has stimulated many efforts to curb the pediatric obesity epidemic. In this article, the authors briefly describe these efforts and examine the role of health economics in informing German health policies and evaluating the outcomes of interventions aimed at reducing pediatric obesity.

Exposure to second-hand smoke and direct healthcare costs in children - results from two German birth cohorts, GINIplus and LISAplus.

Background: Although the negative health consequences of the exposure to second hand tobacco smoke during childhood are already known, evidence on the economic consequences is still rare. The aim of this study was to estimate excess healthcare costs of exposure to tobacco smoke in German children.

Methods: The study is based on data from two birth cohort studies of 3,518 children aged 9-11 years with information on healthcare utilisation and tobacco smoke exposure: the GINIplus study (German Infant Study On The Influence Of Nutrition Intervention Plus Environmental And Genetic Influences On Allergy Development) and the LISAplus study (Influence of Life-Style Factors On The Development Of The Immune System And Allergies In East And West Germany Plus The Influence Of Traffic Emissions And Genetics).