Weight Management Interactions in a Virtual Clinical Environment

Completed

• Conditions: Healthy Volunteers; Body Weight

• Registration Number: NCT01443910
• Lead Sponsor: National Human Genome Research Institute (NHGRI)

Brief Summary

This study is part of an effort to learn about interactions between doctors and patients. We aim to understand how women feel about techniques that doctors use to talk with patients about their weight. We are studying women s reactions to these techniques using a virtual reality version of a doctor s office to create as realistic a model of a doctor s visit as possible. This can help us better understand what happens during real doctor s visits.

Women between the ages of 20 and 50 who are currently overweight may be eligible for this study. Participants will be recruited from the Washington D.C. area. This is not a weight treatment study.

Participants undergo the following procedures:

* Complete an online questionnaire about themselves, their experiences, and their thoughts about their weight

* Participate in activities in a virtual reality environment in which they interact with a virtual doctor in a virtual clinical scenario. For this experiment, participants wear a head-mounted display that allows them to see the virtual world images.

* Fill out a questionnaire after completing the virtual reality activities. This questionnaire includes information on the participants' virtual reality experience, the information provided in the experience, and additional questions about themselves and their thoughts.

Detailed Description

The primary goal of this research project is to build an evidence base related to primary care encounters that include discussions about a patient s body weight. We are particularly interested in how encounters impact patients health-related and weight-related attitudes and beliefs. Furthermore, this project aims to determine how a physician s approach to the health care encounter impacts its outcome.

The current study is a controlled experiment in which participants will be participate in a weight counseling encounter with a virtual reality-based doctor. The virtual doctor will present weight etiology information. Participants will fill out a self-report questionnaire online, prior to this encounter. They will then come in to the Immersive Virtual Environment Testing Area in the NIH Clinical Center for a visit. During this visit, they will engage in the interaction with the virtual doctor and then fill out a post-test questionnaire. Participants in the main trial will include approximately 222 healthy adult females between 20-50 years of age who have a BMI of greater than or equal to 25 and are dissatisfied with their current weight.

Study Timeline

• Study First Submitted: 2011-09-10
• Study First Submitted QC: 2011-09-29
• Study First Posted: 2011-09-30
• Study Start: 2012-02-29
• Primary Completion: 2016-04-06
• Study Completion: 2016-04-06
• Status Verified: 2023-12
• Last Update Submitted: 2023-12-13
• Last Update Posted: 2023-12-14

Recruitment & Eligibility

• Status: COMPLETED
• Sex: Female
• Target Recruitment: 318

Inclusion Criteria

Not provided

Exclusion Criteria

Not provided

Study & Design

• Study Type: OBSERVATIONAL
• Study Design: Not specified

Primary Outcome Measures

Name	Time	Method
attitudes, beliefs, and behavior	cross-sectional	self-report outcomes

Trial Locations

Locations (1)

National Institutes of Health Clinical Center; 🇺🇸 Bethesda, Maryland, United States