Percentage of patients (obese and normal weight, each n = 1150) receiving prescriptions from each of the 15 main BNF prescribing categories during the 18-month period.
| BNF category | BMI 18.5–<25 normal weight (n [%]) | BMI ≥30 obese (n [%]) | P-valuea | P-valueb |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cardiovascular system | 231 (20.1) | 415 (36.1) | <0.001 | <0.001 |
| Central nervous system | 403 (35.0) | 534 (46.4) | <0.001 | <0.001 |
| Endocrine system | 206 (17.9) | 299 (26.0) | <0.001 | <0.001 |
| Musculoskeletal and joint disease | 248 (21.6) | 349 (30.3) | <0.001 | <0.001 |
| No prescriptions | 270 (23.5) | 184 (16.0) | <0.001 | 0.011 |
| Infections | 402 (35.0) | 481 (41.8) | 0.001 | 0.008 |
| Gastrointestinal | 207 (18.0) | 273 (23.7) | 0.001 | 0.025 |
| Skin | 223 (19.4) | 281 (24.4) | 0.005 | 0.033 |
| Respiratory system | 208 (18.1) | 250 (21.7) | 0.032 | 0.392 |
| Ear, nose, oropharynx | 75 (6.5) | 100 (8.7) | 0.054 | 0.090 |
| Obstetrics, gynaecology and urinary tract disorders | 159 (13.8) | 189 (16.4) | 0.056 | 0.136 |
| Anaesthesia | 2 (0.2) | 5 (0.4) | 0.270 | 0.261 |
| Malignant disease and immunosupression | 12 (1.0) | 10 (0.9) | 0.605 | 0.448 |
| Nutrition and blood | 78 (6.8) | 74 (6.4) | 0.686 | 0.361 |
| Vaccines | 119 (10.3) | 123 (10.7) | 0.878 | 0.919 |
| Eye | 102 (8.9) | 102 (8.9) | 0.896 | 0.564 |
↵a P-value derived from logistic regression model comparing the obese vs normal weight prescribing rates with adjustment for age, sex, deprivation category, and country.
↵b P-value derived from logistic regression model comparing the obese versus normal weight prescribing rates after adjustment for age, sex, deprivation category, country, and the presence of a comorbidity. BNF = British National Formulary.