Telemedicine as a tool for dietary intervention in NAFLD-HIV patients during the COVID-19 lockdown: A randomized controlled trial.

BACKGROUND & AIMS: Given reports of changes in dietary habits during covid-19 lockdown, our aim was to assess weight changes, over a 3-month Covid-19 national lockdown in a cohort of NAFLD-HIV patients on a dietary intervention trial.

METHODS

After NAFLD screening in an outpatient Infectious Diseases Clinic, NAFLD patients were randomly allocated to general dietary recommendations (SC group) or to a structured dietary intervention based on the Mediterranean diet (intervention group). During lockdown, follow-up consultations in the intervention group were done by video and/or phone. After 3 months of lockdown, all patients (intervention and SC group) consented to a telephone interview which aimed to characterize eating habits and lifestyle changes and evaluate stress and depression. Biochemical data when available, was compared between the peri-period of confinement.

RESULTS

One hundred and twelve patients were screened. From the 55 NAFDL identified, 27 were allocated to dietary intervention and 28 to SC and were followed before lockdown for a mean period of 5.0 ± 1.5 months in which SC group gained a median of 0.65 kg vs. a median loss of 1.5 kg in the intervention group (p < 0.001). During lockdown, 93.3% of patients in the SC group referred that "diet got worse" vs. 6.7% in the intervention group p < 0.01), and 35.3% vs. 15.7% (p = 0.014) reported increase in appetite, respectively. Both groups gained weight, SC group vs. 0.7 ± 1.7 kg in the intervention group, p < 0.001). Higher weight gain was associated with changes in the dietary pattern (3.8 ± 2.1 kg vs. 2.0 ± 1.3 kg in "no change in dietary pattern"; p = 0.002). Glucose blood levels increased after lockdown in the SC group, with a mean increase of 15 mg/dl (p = 0.023). The remaining metabolic parameters remained unchanged.

CONCLUSION

The maintenance of dietary intervention, using telemedicine, can mitigate the adverse change in dietary habits and physical activity pattern, preventing a substantial increase in body weight.