Archive : Spring 2007

By the Numbers //
All Too Common

30 Percentage of Americans (20 years of age or older) who are obese (with a body mass index of 30 or more)

64 Percentage of hospitals that reported (in a 2005 survey) an increase in the number of admitted, severely obese patients from the previous year

10 Percentage of hospitals surveyed that have remodeled facilities to accommodate obese patients, including enlarging doorways and equipping rooms with lift systems

1,000 Approximate number of pounds that are supported by bariatric devices, such as extra-large beds, wheelchairs and floor-mounted toilets (wall-mounted toilets support roughly 300 pounds)

700+ Projected sales worldwide, in millions of dollars, of bariatric surgical devices by 2013

4.7 Projected overall sales by 2013, in billions of dollars, of prescriptions for the management of obesity

6 Number of people it takes to turn over a very large patient in bed

85 Percentage of hospital staff back injuries linked to caring for heavy patients

732 Average number of dollars added to an obese person’s medical bill each year, 37% more than that of people with normal weight

75 Estimated cost, in billions of dollars, that the United States spent in total obesity-related medical costs between 1998 and 2000, half of which was paid by taxpayers 


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