Computer-Based Weight Maintenance in Primary Care

NCT ID: NCT01946191

Last Updated: 2020-11-02

Study Results

Results available

Outcome measurements, participant flow, baseline characteristics, and adverse events have been published for this study.

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Basic Information

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Recruitment Status

COMPLETED

Clinical Phase

NA

Total Enrollment

194 participants

Study Classification

INTERVENTIONAL

Study Start Date

2013-10-01

Study Completion Date

2017-09-05

Brief Summary

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This randomized trial tested the hypothesis that there would be an incremental benefit of personalized coaching and PCP support in an EHR-based intervention designed to help primary care patients maintain recent intentional weight loss of at least 5%.

Detailed Description

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MAINTAIN-pc (Maintaining Activity and Nutrition through Technology-Assisted Innovation in Primary Care) was a randomized trial conducted in coordination with practices affiliated with the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center (UPMC). Participants were recruited between October 2013 and February 2015, and follow-up was completed in March 2017. The University of Pittsburgh Institutional Review Board approved the study, and all participants provided written informed consent.

Participants were randomly assigned to EHR tools (tracking group) versus EHR tools plus coaching (coaching group). The EHR tools included weight, diet, and physical activity tracking flow sheets; standardized surveys; and reminders. Participants in the coaching group received 2 years of personalized health coaching through the EHR patient portal. Three study coaches had backgrounds in nursing, nutrition, and exercise physiology. The other 2 received EHR training, and all received training on the study protocol. Participants were assigned to a specific coach, who contacted the participants via the EHR weekly for 1 month, biweekly in months 2 to 6, monthly in months 7 to 12, and quarterly in months 13 to 24, for a total of 24 scheduled contacts. Coaching group participants received brief questionnaires relevant to weight management, including a text field where they could discuss questions or barriers. On the basis of participant responses and self-monitoring data in the EHR flow sheets, coaches wrote a brief personalized note with advice on questionnaire topics and responses to any queries or barriers mentioned by the participant. Coaching participants who did not complete questionnaires or log information into the flow sheet for 2 weeks were considered inactive and were contacted by telephone or e-mail and invited to reengage at any time. Coaching participants were able to send secure messages to the coach. Tracking group participants received questionnaires related to general health promotion (for example, vaccines) each quarter but received no feedback on questionnaire responses or flow sheet entries.

Referring PCPs of coaching group participants received regular support, including real-time progress reports with counseling tips delivered via the EHR, notification of weight change in increments of at least 10 pounds, and annual progress reports at 12 and 24 months. The progress reports were developed using feedback from PCPs and consisted of a 1-page summary of participant weight (current, trajectory, and goal), status in the program (active or inactive), use of study flow sheets (with data if available), and brief subjective comments from the coach. Reports were delivered to the PCP via the EHR within 48 hours before scheduled office visits. An electronic copy was also sent to the participant. Referring PCPs of tracking group participants received annual progress reports at 12 and 24 months. Information about the development of the intervention and the coaching protocol has been published previously

The trial was initially designed to be a 36-month intervention, with the primary outcome defined as weight change at 36 months. Delays in EHR build and recruitment resulted in a decision after enrollment was completed to shorten the intervention to 24 months, with 24-month weight change as the revised primary outcome. In addition, we added an exploratory 30-month weight outcome to assess the duration of effect after the intervention ended. An updated institutional review board protocol (with revised consent) was approved on 25 September 2015. These changes were made before any data were analyzed.

In the result section, we are reporting all pre-specified outcomes unintentionally omitted in the original ClinicalTrials submission.

Conditions

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Body Weight Weight Loss Motor Activity

Study Design

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Allocation Method

RANDOMIZED

Intervention Model

PARALLEL

Primary Study Purpose

SUPPORTIVE_CARE

Blinding Strategy

NONE

Study Groups

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Coaching Group

* 24 months of personalized coaching through the EHR patient portal, with 24 scheduled contacts
* Online self-monitoring
* Real-time updates to primary care physicians

Group Type EXPERIMENTAL

24 months of personalized coaching through the EHR patient portal, with 24 scheduled contacts.

Intervention Type BEHAVIORAL

Participants were assigned to a specific coach, who contacted the participants via the EHR weekly for 1 month, biweekly in months 2 to 6, monthly in months 7 to 12, and quarterly in months 13 to 24, for a total of 24 scheduled contacts. Coaching group participants received brief questionnaires relevant to weight management, including a text field where they could discuss questions or barriers. On the basis of participant responses and self-monitoring data in the EHR flow sheets, coaches wrote a brief personalized note with advice on questionnaire topics and responses to any queries or barriers mentioned by the participant. Coaching participants who did not complete questionnaires or log information into the flow sheet for 2 weeks were considered inactive and were contacted by telephone or e-mail and invited to reengage at any time. Coaching participants were able to send secure messages to the coach.

Online self-monitoring

Intervention Type BEHAVIORAL

Participants were encouraged to log in daily and enter data on weight, diet, and physical activity.

Real-time updates to Primary Care physicians

Intervention Type BEHAVIORAL

Referring PCPs of coaching group participants received regular support, including real-time progress reports with counseling tips delivered via the EHR, notification of weight change in increments of at least 10 pounds, and annual progress reports at 12 and 24 months.

Tracking Group

-Online self-monitoring

Group Type ACTIVE_COMPARATOR

Online self-monitoring

Intervention Type BEHAVIORAL

Participants were encouraged to log in daily and enter data on weight, diet, and physical activity.

Interventions

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24 months of personalized coaching through the EHR patient portal, with 24 scheduled contacts.

Participants were assigned to a specific coach, who contacted the participants via the EHR weekly for 1 month, biweekly in months 2 to 6, monthly in months 7 to 12, and quarterly in months 13 to 24, for a total of 24 scheduled contacts. Coaching group participants received brief questionnaires relevant to weight management, including a text field where they could discuss questions or barriers. On the basis of participant responses and self-monitoring data in the EHR flow sheets, coaches wrote a brief personalized note with advice on questionnaire topics and responses to any queries or barriers mentioned by the participant. Coaching participants who did not complete questionnaires or log information into the flow sheet for 2 weeks were considered inactive and were contacted by telephone or e-mail and invited to reengage at any time. Coaching participants were able to send secure messages to the coach.

Intervention Type BEHAVIORAL

Online self-monitoring

Participants were encouraged to log in daily and enter data on weight, diet, and physical activity.

Intervention Type BEHAVIORAL

Real-time updates to Primary Care physicians

Referring PCPs of coaching group participants received regular support, including real-time progress reports with counseling tips delivered via the EHR, notification of weight change in increments of at least 10 pounds, and annual progress reports at 12 and 24 months.

Intervention Type BEHAVIORAL

Eligibility Criteria

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Inclusion Criteria

Eligibility criteria included age 18 to 75 years, body mass index (BMI) of 25 kg/m2 or higher, intentional weight loss of at least 5% in the previous 2 years, access to an Internet-connected computer, and receipt of outpatient care from a UPMC PCP.

Exclusion Criteria

Exclusion criteria included a medical explanation for recent weight loss (for example, cancer), active preparation for bariatric surgery, bariatric surgery in the previous 5 years, or pregnancy.
Minimum Eligible Age

18 Years

Maximum Eligible Age

75 Years

Eligible Sex

ALL

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No

Sponsors

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Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ)

FED

Sponsor Role collaborator

University of Pittsburgh

OTHER

Sponsor Role lead

Responsible Party

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Kathleen McTigue

Principal Investigator

Responsibility Role PRINCIPAL_INVESTIGATOR

Principal Investigators

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Kathleen M McTigue, MD, MPH, MS

Role: PRINCIPAL_INVESTIGATOR

University of Pittsburgh

Locations

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Center for Research on Health Care

Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States

Site Status

Countries

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United States

References

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Conroy MB, Bryce CL, McTigue KM, Tudorascu D, Gibbs BB, Comer D, Hess R, Huber K, Simkin-Silverman LR, Fischer GS. Promoting weight maintenance with electronic health record tools in a primary care setting: Baseline results from the MAINTAIN-pc trial. Contemp Clin Trials. 2017 Mar;54:60-67. doi: 10.1016/j.cct.2017.01.001. Epub 2017 Jan 12.

Reference Type RESULT
PMID: 28089764 (View on PubMed)

Gibbs BB, Tudorascu D, Bryce CL, Comer D, Fischer GS, Hess R, Huber KA, McTigue KM, Simkin-Silverman LR, Conroy MB. Diet and Physical Activity Behaviors in Primary Care Patients with Recent Intentional Weight Loss. Transl J Am Coll Sports Med. 2017;2(18):114-121. Epub 2017 Sep 15.

Reference Type RESULT
PMID: 29130068 (View on PubMed)

Conroy MB, McTigue KM, Bryce CL, Tudorascu D, Gibbs BB, Arnold J, Comer D, Hess R, Huber K, Simkin-Silverman LR, Fischer GS. Effect of Electronic Health Record-Based Coaching on Weight Maintenance: A Randomized Trial. Ann Intern Med. 2019 Dec 3;171(11):777-784. doi: 10.7326/M18-3337. Epub 2019 Nov 12.

Reference Type RESULT
PMID: 31711168 (View on PubMed)

Gibbs BB, Tudorascu D, Bryce CL, Comer D, Fischer GS, Hess R, Huber KA, McTigue KM, Simkin-Silverman LR, Conroy MB. Lifestyle Habits Associated with Weight Regain After Intentional Loss in Primary Care Patients Participating in a Randomized Trial. J Gen Intern Med. 2020 Nov;35(11):3227-3233. doi: 10.1007/s11606-020-06056-x. Epub 2020 Aug 17.

Reference Type DERIVED
PMID: 32808209 (View on PubMed)

Provided Documents

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Document Type: Study Protocol and Statistical Analysis Plan

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Other Identifiers

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1R18HS021162

Identifier Type: AHRQ

Identifier Source: org_study_id

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