On the afternoon of September 16th, 2022, FV Hospital successfully organised a CME training programme with the topic “Strategies For Managing Obesity And Cardiovascular Complications In Obesity”, held both as an in-person event at the Auditorium, third floor, F Building, FV Hospital, and streamed online via Microsoft Teams. The programme attracted more than 200 participants, including doctors, nurses and other medical staff in HCMC and Hanoi, all of whom are interested in the topic.

The programme features speakers who are experts in the fields of nutrition, cardiology, internal medicine, general surgery, and traditional medicine:

1. Dr Do Trong Khanh, MD, PhD – Medical Director, FV Hospital
2. Dr Gail A. Cresci, MD, PhD – Immediate Past President of ASPEN (American Society for Parenteral and Enteral Nutrition); Director – Nutrition Research, Centre for Nutrition, Cleveland Clinic, Cleveland, OH
3. Dr Eliza Mei Perez Francisco, MD, PhD – Head of Nutrition Support Team & Weight Management Centre, Mary Mediatrix Medical Centre, Lipa City, Batangas – Philippines, Chair of ICNS -ASPEN (International Clinical Nutrition Section – ASPEN) & Former President of PhilSPEN (Philippine Society for Parenteral and Enteral Nutrition)
4. Dr Ho Minh Tuan, MD, MSc – Head of Cardiology Department, FV Hospital
5. Dr Luong Ngoc Trung – Thoracic and vascular surgeon, FV Hospital
6. Specialist Level II, Dr Nguyen Viet Quynh Thu, MD, MSc – Head of Nutrition and Dietetics Department, FV Hospital; Vice President of VDA (Vietnam Dietetics Association)
7. Dr Nguyen Thuy Linh, MD, PhD – Deputy Head of Nutrition and Dietetics Department, Hanoi Medical University Hospital
8. Specialist Level II, Dr Phan Van Thai – Head of General Surgery, Thoracic & Vascular Department, FV Hospital
9. Doctor of Chiropractic Wade O’brien Brackenbury, MD, PhD – CEO & Medical Director of ACC Chiropractic Clinic – Member of FV Group
10. Specialist Level I, Dr Nguyen Nam Binh – Pain Specialist, Pain Clinic, FV Hospital
11. Specialist Level I, Dr Diec Kha Han – Head of Traditional Medicine Department, FV Hospital

Ms Pham Thi Thanh Mai, Chief Operations Officer of FV Hospital (pink shirt), presents flowers to the speakers participating in the programme.

Speaking at the opening ceremony, Ms Pham Thi Thanh Mai – CEO of FV Hospital said: “The obesity phenomenon occurs due to the 15/9 lifestyle, the Ministry of Health introduced a strategy with an agenda to control obesity. More than 20% of the population has weight problem This is not a problem of one country, it is happening globally due to the imbalanced lifestyle and living environment, made worse by the Covid-19 pandemic. All of those lead to the out-of-control weight level for the global population. Obesity causes many health problems and has become a greater medical burden. A comprehensive solution is needed. That’s why FV Hospital has organised the CME to provide attendees more knowledge and provide experience in the process of obesity diagnosis, treatment and management.”

At the beginning of the training session, PhD Dr Gail A. Cresci presented the topic ” Gut Microbiota and Obesity: The roles of Pre-biotic and Pro-biotic”, in which the doctor outlined the association in obesity and the appearance of intestinal dysbiosis for people with obesity and normal people. the consequences of dysbiosis can lead to replacement of energy and lipid metabolism that increase body fat gain. These biological disorders may change the activities of the intestinal barrier and immune function that create the right condition for endotoxin metabolism in the blood; This changes the process of sensory Gl peptides production which is related to the feeling of fullness, leading to the increased food intake. At the same time, understanding the changes occurring in the gut microbiota for people with obesity and the physiological consequences is necessary to develop and test the gut so that microbiologically targeted therapeutic strategies can be implemented.

Dr Nguyen Viet Quynh Thu – Head of the Nutrition and Dietetics FV Department

Following the programme was a presentation by Dr Nguyen Viet Quynh Thu – Head of FV Nutrition and Dietetics Department with the topic “Nutritional approach to weight loss” to help define the situation, assess the causes, and describe methods, complications, consequences and especially nutrition to help patients control their weight. Dr Quynh Thu emphasised that the complications of obesity involve many organs in the body and cause conditions such as, sleep apnoea, lung diseases, liver diseases, gallstones, stroke, heart diseases, diabetes, pancreatitis, cancer, arthritis, gout, depression, organ complications, Simultaneously, Dr Quynh Thu also provided recommendations for nutritional diets to help lose weight and encourage patients to change their lifestyle and encourage exercising.

Through the presentation of “Experience in Weight Management in the Philippines”, PhD. Dr Eliza Mei Perez Francisco presented knowledge and experience on determining the role of each member of in an inter-disciplinary weight management team. Each member plays an important role to help patients overcome the challenges to change their lifestyle and to successfully lose weight. “Weight management principles and algorithms help us implement a comprehensive plan for science-based weight management, locally and globally recognised”.

MSc Dr Ho Minh Tuan – Head of Cardiology Department, FV Hospital

Presentation by Cardiovascular and Thoracic surgeon Luong Ngoc Trung

In the topic “Obesity and Cardiovascular Disease” by Dr Ho Minh Tuan and “Obesity and Varicose Veins” presented by Dr Luong Ngoc Trung, showed there are close links between obesity and cardiovascular diseases. People with obesity are at a higher risk of heart failure, stroke or other cardiovascular diseases. This is due to the development of atrial fibrillation due to obesity, which causes arrhythmia that gradually forms blood clots. At the same time, with obesity, the pressure on the body will increase, especially when standing, making it very difficult for blood to return to the heart through the veins. The pressure in the venous lumen increases, causing the venous walls of the superficial and deep veins to dilate. Accordingly, the venous valves close improperly, causing blood to pump to the lower body. From there, it can cause varicose veins in the lower extremities, causing swelling, heaviness, and cramping. This causes pain and numbness in the legs, in the worse cases it leads to the dilation of the peripheral veins and forms blood clots in the veins.

Dr Phan Van Thai – Head of General Surgery Department, FV Hospital

In addition to diet and exercise, surgery is an effective method to eliminate problems of obesity and significantly improve the physical and psychological health of patients. With the topic “Weight Loss Surgery” by Dr Phan Van Thai, presented to the attendees a better understand of this method because not all obese patients are eligible for surgery. They must meet the minimum requirements as follows: BMI of 40 or higher, or BMI of 30 to 39.9 with serious comorbidities such as diabetes, high blood pressure, sleep apnoea, high cholesterol or joint problems. In short, surgery can be very effective in cases where complications are apparent.

Chiropractic consultant Wade O’brien Brackenbury presented at the conference

Dr SLI. Nguyen Nam Binh – Senior Consultant, FV Pain Clinic

Following is the topic “Rehabilitation after surgery” presented by Dr Wade O’brien Brackenbury, which also contributes to helping patients recover quicker and return to daily life as soon as possible. In addition, the topic “Update general guidelines for treatment of neuropathic pain in medical practice” by Dr Nguyen Nam Binh. Although it may sound unrelated to obesity, yet in fact, for patients with obesity, they often have peripheral neuropathic pain. They might feel tingling, numbness, burning, loss of balance, peripheral neuropathy pain, etc. Dr Nam Binh also provided an update on multi-modal pain management including: using oral medications, injections, psychotherapy, lifestyle management, nutritional balance and exercise enhancement.

Dr Diec Kha Han, Head of Traditional Medicine Department

In addition to modern methods for obesity treatment and management, traditional medicine also included “weight loss thread embedding” as method presented by Dr Diec Kha Han. It is a procedure where self-dissolving thread is introduced at the accupoint under the skin, creating biochemical reactions, increasing the regeneration of proteins and carbohydrates. This procedure increases the nutrient metabolism of the muscle, increases muscle fibre strength and improves blood circulation to the embedded area. Thus, it can greatly limit the side effects of the treatment and increase the long-term effectiveness. The rate of complications after treatment also decreases.

With practical clinical experience in the process of obesity treatment for patients at Hanoi Medical University Hospital, Dr Nguyen Thuy Linh shared with CME a clinical case of a patient with obesity level 3. It helped participants understand the diagnostic methods; nutritional treatment and diet management to help patients return to normal weight and improve quality of life.

The workshop ended successfully after more than 4 hours, providing attendees with useful information on the issues related to obesity treatment and management. Armed with the knowledge and experience shared during the training session, the medical staff who participated in the workshop will be able to understand more about this field and will effectively apply it to the examination and treatment process, bringing quality treatment to patients who are facing the associated medical problems.

Some featured photos from the conference:

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