Guided Self-Help vs Group Treatment for Children With Obesity: A Randomized Clinical Trial.

Area of Science:

• Pediatric obesity treatment
• Behavioral health interventions
• Health economics

Background:

• Childhood obesity is a significant public health concern requiring effective interventions.
• Family-based behavioral treatment (FBT) is a proven approach for pediatric obesity.
• There is a need for more time-efficient and cost-effective delivery models of FBT.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the non-inferiority of a guided self-help FBT (gshFBT) program compared to traditional FBT for child weight loss.
• To assess the cost-effectiveness of gshFBT versus FBT in treating pediatric obesity.
• To determine if gshFBT can increase the reach of effective obesity treatment to more families.

Main Methods:

• A randomized controlled trial involving 150 children (aged 7.0-12.9 years) with obesity and their parents.
• Participants were assigned to either a 6-month gshFBT program (n=75) or a 6-month traditional FBT program (n=75).
• Both groups were followed for 12 months post-treatment to assess weight loss and cost-effectiveness.

Main Results:

• gshFBT was found to be non-inferior to FBT regarding child weight loss (ΔBMIz = -0.02).
• The gshFBT program was significantly more cost-effective, costing $1498 per dyad compared to $2775 for FBT.
• No significant differences in weight loss outcomes were observed between the two groups.

Conclusions:

• gshFBT offers a comparable weight loss outcome to traditional FBT for children with obesity.
• The reduced time commitment and lower cost of gshFBT make it a more scalable and accessible intervention.
• gshFBT has the potential to broaden the reach of effective pediatric obesity treatment to a larger population.