Dr. David Lau reviews medical content for Healthwise, a nonprofit
organization with a mission to help people make better health decisions. Dr.
Lau is a practicing endocrinologist who specializes in diabetes, obesity, and
lipid disorders. He is a Professor of Medicine, Biochemistry and Molecular
Biology, and Chair of the Diabetes and Endocrine Research Group at the
University of Calgary.
Dr. Lau is President of Obesity Canada which is a not-for-profit
organization aimed at improving the health of Canadians by reducing the
occurrence of obesity through research, education, and service. In 2004 he was
honored as one of the top 20 Calgarians and one of the top 50 Albertans for his
contributions to health care and research related to obesity.
Dr. Lau is an active researcher, educator, and clinician, and he has
published over 100 scientific papers. He is also involved in giving public
lectures and forums on diabetes, lipids, and obesity. He spearheaded the
evidence-based Obesity Canada clinical practice guidelines for the management
and prevention of obesity in adults and children. He has served as an expert
panel member on the WHO-International Obesity Task Force and the 1998, 2003,
and 2007 Canadian Diabetes Association Clinical Practice Guidelines for Body
Weight Classification, and he is currently a member of the expert panel for the
2007 guideline update.
Board Certifications
- American Boards of Internal
Medicine
- Fellow, Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of
Canada
Healthwise Knowledgebase Topics Reviewed
- Obesity
- Hyperthyroidism
- Type 2
Diabetes
- Cushing's Syndrome
- Diabetes-Related High and
Low Blood Sugar Levels
Education
- MD: University of Toronto, ON
- PhD: University of Toronto, ON
- Internship and
Residency: Harvard Medical School, Internal Medicine and Endocrinology
- Residency and Fellowship: University of Toronto, Internal Medicine
and Endocrinology
Academic Appointments
- Professor of Medicine, Biochemistry and
Molecular Biology, University of Calgary
Professional Affiliations
- American Diabetes
Association
- Canadian Diabetes Association
- Canadian
Society of Endocrinology and Metabolism
- The Endocrine
Society
- The Obesity Society
Selected Publications
- Lau DCW (2006). Synopsis of the 2006 Canadian clinical practice
guidelines on the management and prevention of obesity in adults and children.
Canadian Medical Association Journal, 176(8):
1103-1106.
- Lau DCW, et al. (2006). Canadian clinical practice
guidelines on the management and prevention of obesity in adults and children.
Canadian Medical Association Journal, 176(8 suppl):
S1-13.
- Lau DCW, Dhillon B, Yan H, Szmitko P, Verma S (2005).
Adipokines: Molecular links between obesity and atherosclerosis.
American Journal of Physiology. Heart and Circulatory Physiology, 288(5): H2031-H2041.
- Lau DCW, Yan H, Dhillon B
(2006). Metabolic syndrome: A marker of patients at high cardiovascular risk.
Canadian Journal of Cardiology, 22(suppl B): 85B-90B.
- Padwal R, Li SK, Lau DCW (2003). Long-term pharmacotherapy for
obesity and overweight. Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews (4). Oxford: Update Software.
Financial Disclosure
Research grant support and compensation for consulting received
from:
- Abbott
Laboratories
- AstraZeneca
- Bristol Myers
Squibb
- Eli Lilly
Pharmaceuticals
- GlaxoSmithKline
- Merck and
Co.
- Novo
Nordisk
- Oryx
- Pfizer
- Roche
- Sanofi-Aventis
- Solvay
