Preparing for obesity medicine board certification? Work these free sample questions first. Each mirrors the ABOM certification exam style — a clinical vignette, one best answer, and a rationale grounded in current obesity medicine guidelines. Answer each one before you read the explanation.
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How close are these to the real ABOM exam?
Per ABOM, the certification exam is 200 multiple-choice questions delivered in four one-hour blocks of 50, with up to 35 minutes of break time between blocks, administered each October at Pearson VUE centers across the US and Canada. The weighting is heavily clinical: Treating Patients with Obesity carries 60%, Evaluating, Examining, and Diagnosing Patients with Obesity carries 37%, and Professionalism the remaining 3%. The samples below sit squarely in those two big domains — treatment decisions and evaluation decisions.
| Fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Format | 200 questions — four 1-hour blocks of 50 |
| Breaks | Up to 35 minutes between blocks |
| When and where | October, Pearson VUE test centers (US and Canada) |
| Pace | About 72 seconds per question |
Sample ABOM questions
- A 58-year-old patient with type 2 diabetes (HbA1c 6.7% on metformin), hypertension, and Class I obesity (BMI 33 kg/m²) presents for a 3-month follow-up after initiating obesity pharmacotherapy. They report strict adherence to lifestyle modification, yet total weight loss is 3% and labs show an elevated LDL. What is the best next step?
- A. Reassure the patient that 3% weight loss is clinically meaningful for metabolic health, continue the current regimen, and recheck in 3 months
- B. Emphasize glycemic control (HbA1c) as the primary success metric, continue current obesity treatment, and initiate statin therapy
- C. Discontinue the current anti-obesity medication due to suboptimal response and prioritize intensive lifestyle intervention alone
- D. Discuss that 3% weight loss is below the expected initial target, explore potential medication barriers, and consider adjusting the regimen
Answer: D. Current guidelines (AACE/ACE, ADA/EASD) define clinically meaningful weight loss as ≥5% at 3 months for anti-obesity medication efficacy, because that threshold significantly improves cardiometabolic risk factors like this patient’s elevated LDL. Option D names the gap honestly, hunts for barriers, and adjusts therapy — rather than reframing a below-target response as success.
- A 52-year-old woman with class 2 obesity (BMI 38 kg/m²) and prediabetes presents for follow-up. She has diligently walked her dog 30 minutes daily for 3 months but is frustrated by minimal weight loss (1 kg). She describes a slow pace, frequent stops, and only mild breathlessness. Which detail is most important to assess next?
- A. The exact distance covered during each 30-minute walk
- B. The presence of any muscle soreness or discomfort the day after walking
- C. The average intensity level of her walking using a perceived exertion scale
- D. The total daily time spent sitting or lying down outside of sleep
Answer: C. Optimizing physical activity for weight loss requires assessing intensity, because intensity drives energy expenditure. Duration is already known; the slow pace, frequent stops, and only mild breathlessness all point to low-intensity effort, which explains the inadequate weight loss and gives you something concrete to prescribe against.
What makes ABOM questions feel different?
They test judgment, not recall. Most stems hand you a patient who is already doing something reasonable — on a medication, walking daily — and ask what to change. The distractors are polite ways of accepting a suboptimal status quo. Train yourself to ask one question of every vignette: is this response on target for this timepoint?
Want 600 more questions like these?
Our ABOM prep course contains 3 full-length simulators — 600 questions total, weighted like the blueprint above, each with a guideline-based rationale. It is $19.99 once for lifetime access, and the free simulator lets you baseline before paying anything.
Unlock 600 ABOM practice questions across 3 full-length simulators — $19.99 lifetime →
Round out your prep with the ABOM cheat sheet and the ABOM study plan.
Frequently asked questions
How many questions is the ABOM exam?
200 multiple-choice questions, delivered in four one-hour blocks of 50. Candidates may use up to 35 minutes of break time between blocks.
What is on the ABOM exam?
Treating Patients with Obesity dominates at 60% of scoring; Evaluating, Examining, and Diagnosing Patients with Obesity carries 37%, and Professionalism 3%.
Who is eligible for ABOM certification?
Physicians with an active unrestricted US or Canadian license, a completed US/Canada residency, and active ABMS (or osteopathic equivalent) board certification — via the CME pathway (60 obesity CME credits, including 30 ABOM-designated Group One) or an obesity medicine fellowship.
How much does the ABOM exam cost?
$1,500 if you apply by the early deadline (July 10), rising to $1,750 by the final application deadline (August 7).
Sources & references
The exam facts on this page are drawn from official certifying-body materials, reviewed 2026-06-18 by the DrCertifications exam-prep team (10+ years in exam preparation and publishing).