Effectiveness of a Pilot eHealth Intervention for Obesity Treatment in At-Risk Pediatric Patients in Primary Care Settings
Assessing the Impact of Dynamo Kids! e-Health Intervention on Pediatric Obesity
Overview
The growing prevalence of pediatric obesity presents a formidable challenge, particularly within primary care settings. Factors such as limited consultation time and the difficulties faced by families from underprivileged backgrounds in attending multiple visits exacerbate this issue. In response, Dynamo Kids! (DK), a bilingual e-health intervention, was developed to systematically address these challenges. A recent pilot study examined the effects of DK on parental perceptions of healthy habits and child body mass index (BMI).
Methodology
This pilot study utilized a quasi-experimental cohort design over three months, targeting parents with children aged 6 to 12 years who had a BMI at or above the 85th percentile. Conducted at three public primary care sites in Dallas, Texas, the DK intervention provided participants with three educational modules, a tracking tool, various nutritious recipes, and curated links to additional online resources. The study involved pre- and post-intervention online surveys completed by parents, allowing researchers to evaluate changes in family nutrition and physical activity (FNPA) scores, as well as child %BMI at the 95th percentile (%BMIp95) and self-reported parent BMI. Statistical analyses employed mixed-effects linear regression models to ascertain the impact of the intervention.
Results
Out of 73 families who completed the initial survey, a significant portion (63%) engaged with the DK e-health platform. Among these users, results indicated a notable increase in FNPA scores, with a mean change of 3.0 (standard deviation: 6.3, p = 0.01), suggesting improved dietary and physical activity behaviors among participating families. Although the average change in child %BMIp95 showed a decrease of 1.03% (standard deviation: 5.79, p = 0.22), it did not reach statistical significance. Conversely, self-reported parent BMI experienced a statistically significant reduction of 0.69 (standard deviation: 1.76, p = 0.04). Furthermore, adjusted analyses revealed a change of -0.02% (95% confidence interval: -0.03 to -0.01) in child %BMIp95 for every additional minute spent on the DK website.
Conclusions
The findings from the pilot study indicate that the DK intervention effectively enhances parental awareness regarding healthy lifestyle choices and promotes weight management within the family unit. Specifically, it emerged as a promising tool for achieving improvements in FNPA scores and reducing parent BMI, demonstrating that e-health solutions can alleviate traditional barriers to pediatric weight management. As public health and healthcare professionals seek innovative methods to combat obesity among vulnerable populations, e-health interventions like DK offer a viable alternative requiring less time commitment compared to in-person consultations. Future research should further explore the long-term implications of such digital solutions in pediatric health management.
Keywords
Child, Pediatric Obesity, e-health, Primary Care, Vulnerable Populations, Texas, Telemedicine, Weight Management, Hispanic, Black, COVID-19.
