A pilot study evaluating the prefeasibility of a behavioral weight loss program in people with multiple sclerosis

Julia S Cozart; Amanda S Bruce; Christie Befort; Catherine Siengsukon; Sharon G Lynch; Stephanie Punt; Stephen Simon; Robin P Shook; Joanie Huebner; Taylor Bradish; Jade Robichaud; Jared M Bruce

doi:10.1016/j.pmedr.2023.102437

A pilot study evaluating the prefeasibility of a behavioral weight loss program in people with multiple sclerosis

Prev Med Rep. 2023 Sep 22:36:102437. doi: 10.1016/j.pmedr.2023.102437. eCollection 2023 Dec.

Authors

Julia S Cozart^{1

2}, Amanda S Bruce^{3

4}, Christie Befort⁵, Catherine Siengsukon⁶, Sharon G Lynch⁷, Stephanie Punt^{8

9}, Stephen Simon¹, Robin P Shook^{4

10

11}, Joanie Huebner¹², Taylor Bradish¹, Jade Robichaud¹, Jared M Bruce^{1

13

14}

Affiliations

¹ University of Missouri-Kansas City School of Medicine, Department of Biomedical and Health Informatics, 2411 Holmes St., Kansas City, MO, USA.
² University of Missouri-Kansas City, Department of Psychology, 5030 Cherry St., Kansas City, MO, USA.
³ Department of Pediatrics, University of Kansas Medical Center, 2801 Olathe Blvd., Kansas City, KS, USA.
⁴ Children's Mercy Hospital, Center for Children's Healthy Lifestyles and Nutrition, 610 E 22 St., Kansas City, MO, USA.
⁵ University of Kansas Medical Center, Department of Population Health, 2060 W 39 Ave., Kansas City, KS, USA.
⁶ University of Kansas Medical Center, Department of Physical Therapy, Rehabilitation Science, and Athletic Training, 3901 Rainbow Blvd., Kansas City, KS, USA.
⁷ University of Kansas Medical Center, Department of Neurology, 3901 Rainbow Blvd., Kansas City, KS, USA.
⁸ University of Kansas, Department of Psychology, 1415 Jayhawk Blvd., Lawrence, KS, USA.
⁹ University of California, Los Angeles, Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human Behavior, 760 Westwood Plaza, Los Angeles, CA 90024, USA.
¹⁰ Department of Pediatrics, Children's Mercy Hospital, 2401 Gillham Rd., Kansas City, MO, USA.
¹¹ School of Medicine, University of Missouri-Kansas City, 2411 Holmes St., Kansas City, MO USA.
¹² University Health Lakewood Medical Center, UMKC Department of Community and Family Medicine, 7900 Lee's Summit Rd., Kansas City, MO, USA.
¹³ Department of Neurology, University Health, 2411 Holmes St., Kansas City, MO, USA.
¹⁴ Department of Psychiatry, University Health, 2411 Holmes St., Kansas City, MO, USA.

Abstract

Weight loss interventions seldom include individuals with neurologic disease. The aims of the present study were to: 1) develop and assess the prefeasibility of a 6-month telehealth behavioral weight loss program for people with multiple sclerosis (MS) and obesity and 2) examine changes in weight loss (primary outcome), physical activity, and fruit/vegetable consumption at follow-up. Participants with obesity and MS engaged in a 24-week weight loss program. Participants followed established diet, exercise, and self-monitoring guidelines and attended weekly online group meetings. Median percentage weight loss was 10.54 % (SD = 7.19). Participants who adhered more closely to the self-monitoring guidelines (r = 0.81, p =.02), and who averaged higher weekly active minutes (r = 0.91, p =.002) achieved greater percentage weight loss. Six of the eight pilot participants achieved clinically meaningful weight loss (>5%) after 6-months.

Keywords: Diet; Exercise; Healthy Lifestyle; Multiple Sclerosis; Obesity; Weight Loss; Wellness.