Kyung Hee University Hospital said Wednesday it has opened a "Pediatric and Adolescent Obesity and Metabolic Clinic" and begun full-scale treatment.
Obesity that develops during childhood and adolescence goes beyond simple weight gain and can lead to serious chronic conditions such as hypertension, diabetes, and metabolic dysfunction-associated fatty liver disease. In particular, the growth period, when physical development and lifestyle formation occur simultaneously, requires a specialized approach that considers individual characteristics.
Kyung Hee University Hospital opened the dedicated pediatric and adolescent clinic to comprehensively assess the causes and risk factors of growth-stage obesity and to detect comorbidities early.
The clinic provides customized care that takes growth and developmental characteristics into account, including evaluation of hereditary obesity and nutritional counseling and education. It has also established an integrated full-cycle care system covering everything from lifestyle improvement to growth and development monitoring, as well as complication prevention and management, further strengthening expertise in treating pediatric and adolescent obesity.
The treatment areas are subdivided into hypertension, metabolic dysfunction-associated fatty liver disease, sleep apnea and allergies, diabetes and hyperlipidemia, and metabolic syndrome, with one-stop collaborative care across fields available within the same appointment time. This is intended to reduce the burden on patients and guardians of having to make multiple visits and to improve treatment efficiency.
"Pediatric and adolescent obesity not only affects growth and health but can also become a major risk factor for chronic diseases in adulthood," Kyung Hee University Hospital Director Kim Jong-woo said. "Through early diagnosis and specialized management, we will provide the best medical services so that children can form proper lifestyle habits and grow up healthy."
