Discussion
obesity
OBESITY, CHILDHOOD OBESITY
This study is the first to report on the long-term follow-up of a 12-month obesity treatment among a diverse population of preschool-age children. Weight change was analyzed with four different metrics: BMI-SDS, BMI, WC and %IOTF25. We observed that all groups of children, independently of randomization, reduced their weight status as defined by BMI-SDS from baseline to 48 months with no differences between groups. However, when assessing %IOTF25, a variable more suitable for the comparison of child weight status over a longer period, no reduction of weight status was found. Notably, %IOTF25 for the children who participated in the intensive parent support program followed by booster phone calls (PGB) did not change, whereas both the group without booster sessions (PGNB) and the standard treatment group (ST) experienced an increase in %IOTF25. When evaluating a clinically significant reduction of ≥0.5 BMI-SDS, we found this to be twice as likely in PGB compared to ST. Taken together and in line with our previously reported evaluation of the effectiveness of the ML trial after 12 months [Given the debate on which metric is best when evaluating weight status over time [Long-term follow-up of preschool-aged children with obesity who have participated in treatment is scarce, and no other RCT has followed young children with obesity for as long as 48 months [Evidence shows that intensive treatment for childhood obesity yields the best results, with more than 26 h per year found to reduce excess weight [