Impact of Self-Monitoring Technology and Interventionist Contact on Weight Loss

描述(由申请人提供)：这个国家研究服务奖(F32)的目标是让凯瑟琳·米德尔顿成为一名独立研究员，研究肥胖行为治疗的比较成本效益，以及将有效的行为体重管理技术传播到公共健康水平的干预措施。通过授课和直接指导的培训经验相结合，该培训计划将为她提供以下领域的技能和知识：肥胖症的评估和治疗；临床试验研究的方法学、统计学和伦理学；以及比较成本效益分析技术。在整个颁奖过程中，凯瑟琳·米德尔顿将与她杰出的导师Rena Wing博士和项目顾问Pedro Goal博士密切合作。布朗大学沃伦·阿尔伯特医学院和米里亚姆医院体重控制和糖尿病研究中心的资源，加上她导师的专业知识，将为凯瑟琳·米德尔顿提供理想的环境，以实现她的培训目标并过渡到一名独立研究人员。肥胖仍然是一个重大的公共卫生问题。目前的治疗方法有效，但成本高昂，覆盖范围有限。新的自我监测技术有望帮助更多的人减肥；然而，关于这项技术的研究很少。目前尚不清楚这项技术本身是否足以产生减肥效果，或者是否必须与干预者接触相结合。在目前的项目中，84名超重和肥胖的人将被随机分为自我护理对照组、技术条件组或技术加干预者接触条件组。这项研究的主要目的是评估这种新的自我监测技术，在有和没有干预者接触的情况下，与自我护理对照组相比，对6个月后体重减轻的影响。这项研究的第二目的是对干预措施的组成部分进行初步的成本-效果分析。这项研究的结果将用于未来的K奖励拨款申请，以资助一项全功率随机试验，评估在有和没有干预者接触的情况下提供的新自我监测技术的有效性和成本效益。目前拟议项目的完成将使凯瑟琳能够发展肥胖症评估治疗、临床试验开发和分析以及干预成本和成本效益的评估和分析方面的技能。卫生经济学的课程作业，加上为期3天的成本效益分析密集研讨会，将使凯瑟琳做好准备，使用当前项目的数据进行初步成本效益分析，这将使她掌握对未来全功率随机试验进行全面成本效益分析的技能。这些肥胖治疗和成本效益研究方面的技能将使申请者能够继续作为一名独立研究员的职业生涯，研究将有效的行为体重管理治疗转化为公共健康水平干预的方法。

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): The goal of this National Research Service Award (F32) is to prepare Kathryn Middleton to become an independent researcher studying the comparative cost-effectiveness of behavioral treatments for obesity and the dissemination of effective behavioral weight management techniques to public-health level interventions. Through a combination of didactic and direct mentored training experiences, this training plan will provide her with skills and knowledge in the following areas: assessment and treatment of obesity; the methodology, statistics, and ethics of clinical trials research; and techniques for comparative cost-effectiveness analysis. Kathryn Middleton will work closely with her distinguished mentor, Dr. Rena Wing, and project consultant, Dr. Pedro Goal, throughout the course of this award. The resources at the Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University and The Miriam Hospital's Weight Control and Diabetes Research Center, combined with the expertise of her mentor will provide Kathryn Middleton with the ideal environment to achieve her training goals and transition to an independent researcher. Obesity remains a significant public health problem. Current treatments are effective but costly and have limited reach. New self-monitoring technology offers promise for helping larger groups of individuals lose weight; however, little research has been conducted on this technology. It is unknown whether this technology, in and of itself, is sufficient to produce weight loss or if it must be combined with interventionist contact. For the current project, 84 overweight and obese individuals will be randomized to a self-care control group, a technology condition, or a technology plus interventionist contact condition. The primary aim of this study is to assess the impact of this new self-monitoring technology, with and without interventionist contact, in comparison to a self-care control group, on weight loss at 6 months. The secondary aim of this study is to conduct a preliminary cost-effectiveness analysis on intervention components. The results from this study will be used in a future K award grant application to fund a fully-powered randomized trial assessing the efficacy and cost-effectiveness of new self-monitoring technology, delivered with and without interventionist contact. Completion of the current proposed project will allow Kathryn to develop skills in obesity assessment treatment, clinical trial development and analysis, and assessment and analysis of intervention costs and cost- effectiveness. Coursework in health economics, combined with a 3-day intensive seminar in cost-effectiveness analysis, will prepare Kathryn to conduct a preliminary cost-effectiveness analysis using data from the current project, which will give her the skills to conduct a full cost-effectiveness analysis on the future fully-powered randomized trial. These skills in obesity treatment and cost-effectiveness research will allow the applicant to continue on to a career as an independent researcher investigating methods to translate effective behavioral weight management treatments to public-health level interventions.