Back to Annual Meeting

Back to Annual Meeting

APHA Scientific Session and Event Listing

Nancy Sohler, PhD, MPH¹, Joel M. Levy, DWS², Erica Lubetkin, MD, MPH¹, Christine Soghomonian, MA², and Shelly Botuck, PhD². (1) Department of Community Health and Social Medicine, City College of New York, 138th Street and Convent Avenue, New York, NY 10031, 212.650.7789, nsohler@med.cuny.edu, (2) YAI/National Institute for People with Disabilities, 460 West 34th St., New York, NY 10001-2382

Objective: This study examines the prevalence of overweight and obesity in an ethnically diverse population of adults with intellectual and/or developmental disabilities living in community settings in New York City. Methods: Data were collected on 332 individuals (27.1% white, 43.7% black, and 29.2% Hispanic) who obtained primary care at a specialty medical practice that serves individuals with disabilities in four boroughs of NYC. Height, weight and other medical information were obtained from detailed chart reviews and demographic and disability information were obtained from the New York State OMRDD Developmental Disabilities Profile-2. Results: In contrast to NYC general population data that indicate that 53% of adults are overweight or obese, 69.3% of our sample was overweight or obese (27.4% of the sample was overweight and 41.9% of the sample was obese). The prevalence of overweight/obesity varied by co-morbid health condition. For example, prevalence was higher for people with co-morbid psychiatric disorders (75.2% of those with a co-morbid disorder were overweight/obese vs. 65.1% of those without a disorder were overweight/obese) and slightly lower for people with seizure disorders (63.3% were of those with a seizure disorder were overweight/obese vs. 71.5% of those without a seizure disorder were overweight/obese). Analyses will examine these and other patterns in relation to chronic disease sequelae of obesity, including diabetes, hypertension, and hypercholesterolemia. Conclusions: Overweight and obesity is a significant problem in this racially diverse, urban population of adults with developmental/intellectual disabilities. The implications of these findings for preventative care practices and service coordination will be discussed.

Learning Objectives: At the conclusion of the session, the participant in the session will be able to

• List several risk factors for overweight and obesity in adults with developmental disabilities
• Discuss how these risk factors can be addressed through health promotion activities
• Describe how service coordination might address the problem of overweight/obesity in adults with developmental disabilities

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

Any relevant financial relationships? No