Multidisciplinary intervention in obese adolescents: predictors of dropout

Objective To identify biological and psychosocial factors associated with dropout in a multidisciplinary behavioral intervention in obese adolescents.Methods A total of 183 adolescents (15.4±1.6 years), pubertal (Tanner stage 3 or 4) and obese (34.7±4.0kg/m2), were enrolled in a 12-week behavioral intervention, which included clinical consultations (monthly), nutritional and psychological counseling (once a week), and supervised aerobic training (three times/week). The studied variables were weight, height, body mass index, body composition (skinfold), cardiorespiratory fitness (direct gas analysis), blood lipids and self-reported symptoms of eating disorders (bulimia, anorexia and binge eating), anxiety, depression, body image dissatisfaction and quality of life. Statistical analysis included binary logistic regression and independent t-tests.Results Of the adolescents, 73.7% adhered to the program. The greatest chance for dropout was observed among adolescents older than 15 years (odds ratio of 0.40; 95%CI: 0.15-0.98), with more anorexia symptoms (odds ratio of 0.35; 95%CI: 0.14-0.86) and hypercholesterolemia (odds ratio of 0.40; 95%CI: 0.16-0.91) at baseline.Conclusion Older adolescents, with more symptoms of eating disorders and total cholesterol have less chance to adhere to multidisciplinary treatments.