Papers of the Week

Previous studies have demonstrated that weight loss has been shown to improve pain in weight-bearing joints, and more recent studies suggest that weight loss may be accompanied by improvements in pain in non-weight-bearing regions. In previous work, we demonstrated that these symptoms improve substantially in patients with obesity undergoing 12 weeks of a very low-energy diet (VLED) restricted to 800 kcal as part of a weight-loss program. Preclinical models also have shown analgesic effects of calorie restriction. The purpose of the current observational study was to determine the time course and trajectory of improvement in pain and other symptoms, especially during the early phase of a VLED intervention, prior to major weight loss.