1 Telehealth Center, University Hospital, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte, Brazil.
2 Department of Internal Medicine, Medical School, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte, Brazil.
J Telemed Telecare. 2019 Sep;25(8):476-483. doi: 10.1177/1357633X18782092. Epub 2018 Jun 27.
Mobile-technology-based interventions are promising strategies for promoting behavioural change in obese patients. The aims of this study were to evaluate the feasibility of implementing a text message intervention, and to assess the effects of the intervention on body mass index (BMI) and self-reported behavioural change.
TELEFIT was a three-phase feasibility study comprising the following stages: (a) the development of text messages; (b) testing; and (c) a quasi-experimental pilot study in which patients who were engaged in obesity/overweight educational groups in public primary care centres in Belo Horizonte, Brazil, were recruited. A bank of text messages was drafted and reviewed by an expert panel, text message delivery software was developed and tested, and a pilot study assessed patients before and after receiving the intervention using validated questionnaires and body measures. The data were analysed using the Wilcoxon test.
A total of 46 patients completed the follow-up; 93.5% were women and the median age was 42 years (interquartile range (IQR) 34-52 years). At four months, participants had a significant reduction in BMI (median 31.3 (IQR 28.2-34.6) vs. 29.9 (IQR 27.2-34.6) kg/m, < 0.001), systolic (median 125 (IQR 120-132) vs. 120 (IQR 110-130) mmHg, = 0.013) and diastolic blood pressure (median 80 (IQR 70-100) vs. 80 (IQR 70-80) mmHg, = 0.006), when compared to baseline. All patients reported to be satisfied and willing to continue receiving the intervention, and 93.3% felt that the intervention helped them change their behaviours.
This study has shown that a text message intervention to promote behavioural change and weight loss was feasible and effective in a short-term period. Participants were satisfied and willing to continue receiving the SMS messages.
基于移动技术的干预措施是促进肥胖患者行为改变的有前途的策略。本研究的目的是评估实施短信干预的可行性，并评估该干预对体重指数（BMI）和自我报告行为改变的影响。
TELEFIT 是一项三阶段可行性研究，包括以下阶段：（a）短信的开发；（b）测试；（c）在巴西贝洛奥里藏特的公共初级保健中心参与肥胖/超重教育小组的患者进行的准实验性试点研究。起草了一组短信，并由专家小组进行了审查，开发并测试了短信发送软件，试点研究使用经过验证的问卷和身体测量方法在干预前后评估了患者。数据采用 Wilcoxon 检验进行分析。
共有 46 名患者完成了随访；93.5%为女性，中位年龄为 42 岁（四分位距（IQR）34-52 岁）。在四个月时，参与者的 BMI 显著降低（中位数 31.3（IQR 28.2-34.6）vs. 29.9（IQR 27.2-34.6）kg/m，<0.001），收缩压（中位数 125（IQR 120-132）vs. 120（IQR 110-130）mmHg，=0.013）和舒张压（中位数 80（IQR 70-100）vs. 80（IQR 70-80）mmHg，=0.006），与基线相比。所有患者均报告满意并愿意继续接受干预，93.3%的患者认为干预有助于改变他们的行为。
本研究表明，促进行为改变和减肥的短信干预在短期内是可行且有效的。参与者满意并愿意继续接收短信。
