A Longitudinal Effectiveness Study of a Child Obesity Electronic Health Record Tool.

Abstract

Primary-care providers, clinic staff, and nurses play an important role in reducing child obesity; yet time restraints and clinical demands compete with effective pediatric weight management and prevention. To investigate the potential impact of an electronic health record (EHR) enabled tool to assist primary care teams in addressing child obesity, we conducted a controlled effectiveness study of FitTastic compared with usual care on the BMI pattern of 291 children (2 to 17 years) up to 4 years later. Per χ² analysis, a greater proportion of children with baseline overweight/obesity in the EHR tool group than the control group had a favorable BMI pattern (32% vs 13%, <i>P</i> = <i>.03</i>). In logistic regression, FitTastic children were more likely than control children to have a favorable BMI pattern at follow-up (OR 3.8, 95% CI 1.1 to 13.2), adjusted for age, gender, race, and parental education. Study findings suggest that EHR-enabled tools to assist primary care teams in managing child obesity may be useful for helping to address the weight in children with overweight/obesity, especially in younger children (2 to 5 years). Digital and EHR-enabled technologies may prove useful for partnering health care teams and families in the important tasks of setting positive, family-centered healthy lifestyle behavioral goals and managing child overweight and obesity.