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Comparative Costs of a Parent-Only and Parent and Child Treatment for Children with Overweight or Obesity
Kerri N Boutelle1,2,3, David Strong2, June Liang1
1Department of Pediatrics, UC San Diego, La Jolla, California, USA.
Insights
Parent-based treatment (PBT) is a cost-effective alternative to family-based treatment (FBT) for childhood obesity. This study found PBT to be noninferior to FBT in weight loss outcomes while demonstrating lower costs.
Area of Science:
- Pediatric Endocrinology
- Health Economics
- Behavioral Health
Background:
- Family-based treatment (FBT) is a leading intervention for childhood obesity.
- Emerging evidence indicates parent-based treatment (PBT) may be equally effective.
- Comparative cost-effectiveness of these models requires further investigation.
Purpose of the Study:
- To compare the economic costs of FBT and PBT for pediatric obesity.
- To determine if PBT offers a more cost-effective approach than FBT.
Main Methods:
- A randomized controlled trial involving 150 children with overweight/obesity and their parents.
- Six-month FBT and PBT intervention programs.
- Cost analysis from healthcare and limited societal perspectives.
Main Results:
- PBT demonstrated lower costs per parent-child dyad compared to FBT.
- Healthcare sector costs: PBT $2,886 vs. FBT $3,899.
- Limited societal costs: PBT $3,231 vs. FBT $4,279.
Conclusions:
- Parent-based treatment (PBT) is a cost-effective intervention for pediatric obesity.
- PBT is noninferior to FBT in achieving weight loss for children and parents.
- PBT presents a financially viable alternative for childhood obesity management.
Objective:
Models such as family-based treatment (FBT), delivered to both the parent and child, are considered the most efficacious intervention for children with obesity. However, recent research suggests that parent-based treatment (PBT; or parent-only treatment) is noninferior to FBT. The aim of this study was to evaluate the comparative costs of the FBT and PBT models.
Methods:
A total of 150 children with overweight and obesity and their parents were randomized to one of two 6-month treatment programs (FBT or PBT). Data was collected at baseline, during treatment, and following treatment, and and trial-based analyses of the costs were conducted from a health care sector perspective and a limited societal perspective.
Results:
Results suggest that PBT, compared with FBT, had lower costs per parent-child dyad from the health care sector perspective (PBT = $2,886; FBT = $3,899) and from a limited societal perspective (PBT = $3,231; FBT = $4,279).
Conclusions:
These findings suggest that a PBT intervention has lower costs and is noninferior to an FBT intervention for both child and parent weight loss.
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