5. Conclusions
obesity, eating behavior
OBESITY, HYPERTENSION
This study suggests, for the first time, that the presence of patients' “own doctor” in the audiovisual content of an online intervention program (aimed at promoting a healthy lifestyle through regular physical exercise and healthy eating behavior) do not show significant additional benefits over the efficacy of the e–counseling in patients with an obesity–hypertension phenotype. Future studies with multiple doctors per arm, controlling for therapeutic alliance or similar constructs, with a larger and more representative sample size, and with ambulatory blood pressure measurements, should investigate the impact of the presence of a patients' “own doctor” in audiovisual web-based interventions for adults with obesity and hypertension. On the other hand, this study opens the door to future research on online interventions focused on other pathological populations supported by multimedia material and the presence of a physician or other health professionals.