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Paper On Weight Loss

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“Integrating Technology into Standard Weight Loss Treatment” was published in JAMA Internal Medicine on December 10, 2012. The randomized controlled trial was conducted by Bonnie Spring, PhD, et al. The primary author is affiliated with the Department of Preventive Medicine at Northwestern University. In this study, the research team questioned if intensive obesity treatment could be made scalable by introducing mobile health technology. Based on prior research by Appel and colleagues, it was hypothesized that a multicomponent behavioral approach including mobile decision support and telephone coaching could improve short-term weight loss results and help remove barriers to care. The study was conducted over a 12-month period and involved …show more content…

Measurement of exposure variables in the intervention phase included caloric intake and level of physical activity, which were actively monitored on PDAs. Outcomes involved weight measurements at 3 month intervals, beginning at study randomization and concluding at the 12-month follow up. 5% loss of initial body weight was considered clinically significant. Projected statistical power of 0.80 was based on a sample size of 150, which may affect the validity of results due to actual study sample size of 69. No confounders were identified. Study duration can be represented as a measure of prevalence divided by incidence. Odds ratio was calculated and did not vary over the study (P = 0.13), with results demonstrating that the +mobile group was 6.5 times more likely to lose initial body weight. A logistic regression model was also implemented for data analysis.
Inclusion criteria specified that research participants include only overweight and obese adults, BMI of 25-40, that could engage in moderate-intensity physical activity and had been referred to MOVE! from a Midwestern VA hospital. Exclusion criteria included certain mental and physical impairments. The eligibility screening resulted in 69 test subjects from a pool of 1371 assessed candidates over a 3-year period. Randomization was stratified by age, BMI, and sex. Socioeconomic status was not measured. Participants were representative of the target VA population, although the small sample size

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