Evaluation of a Childhood Obesity Program Serving a High-Need Population in Brooklyn, New York Using Survival Analysis

Alecia James, Aimee Afable, Nagla Bayoumi and Sarita Dhuper

Congratulations to the Live Light Live Right team and the SUNY Downstate School of Public          Health partners on their recent publication highlighting the long term effectiveness of the Live Light program.

They used survival analysis to evaluate whether contact hours intensity was associated with a reduction in time to improvement of various BMI metrics over a 5- year follow-up period at the Live Light Live Right pediatric obesity program  in Brooklyn, New York. This was a single-center retrospective longitudinal study of 406 patients during 2010–2016. Participants were categorized based on hours of  exposure to Live Light Live Right’s interventions; high contact hours (≥50 h) vs. low contact hours (<50 h). At baseline, 88% of patients in the high contact hour group    had severe obesity and the mean age for this group was 10.0 ± 2.66. High contact hours were independently associated with a shorter time to BMI improvement in the sample. There was also a significant association between high contact hours and a longer duration in the improved state. Survival analysis was successful in evaluating the efficacy of the Live Light Live Right Program and demonstrated a positive association between greater intervention intensity and a healthier metabolic profile. Patients’ active engagement in a robust treatment model exemplified by Live Light Live Right is recommended to address the childhood obesity crisis in central  Brooklyn.

Published Article in the International Journal of Environmental Research & Public Health

Read the published article here