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Completed Not applicable Interventional

Low Carbohydrate Diet: The Effects on Non Alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease in Obese Teens With Metabolic Syndrome

ClinicalTrials.gov ID: NCT02358928

Public ClinicalTrials.gov record NCT02358928. Field values are reproduced from the official study page; the official ClinicalTrials.gov record remains the source of truth for eligibility, enrollment, and contact information.

ClinicalTrials.gov public records Last synced Sep 1, 2026, 12:00 PM EDT

Data is sourced from official ClinicalTrials.gov public API records. Always review the official ClinicalTrials.gov record for the latest information.

Brief summary

Reproduced verbatim from the official ClinicalTrials.gov record. Not medical advice.

Concurrent with the rising prevalence of childhood obesity, the co-morbid condition of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) has become the leading cause of chronic liver disease among children. NAFLD is characterized by accrual of excess triglycerides (TG) in the liver that leads to inflammation, fibrosis, and cirrhosis. One-third of the pediatric population has NAFLD, a disease strongly associated with insulin-resistance and metabolic-syndrome (Met-S). NAFLD is predicted to become the leading cause of liver transplantation in adults by 2030. Current understanding of NAFLD indicates that presence of excess TG in liver is an absolute requirement for disease progression. First-line therapy for NAFLD is focused on decreasing adiposity and improving insulin sensitivity through diet and exercise. Recent adult data indicate that dietary carbohydrate-restriction is more effective at reducing hepatic TG-content than traditional calorie-restriction. Few studies have been conducted to establish resolution of hepatic steatosis by any intervention. Such studies in pediatrics are primarily limited by a need for liver biopsy. However, hepatic proton magnetic resonance spectroscopy (H-MRS) is a new innovative tool used to quantitatively measure hepatic TG content in a non-invasive manner. The primary aim is to compare the impact of dietary weight loss via carbohydrate-restriction and calorie-restriction on hepatic TG-content quantified by H-MRS in obese children with biopsy-proven NAFLD and Met-S. This IRB approved protocol is a randomized control study. The investigators will recruit subjects from the Center for Obesity and its Consequences in Health and the pediatric gastroenterology clinics between the ages of 11-17 years who meet criteria for NAFLD and Met-S. A H-MRS will be obtained in each subject prior to the start of dietary intervention. Fifty-four subjects will be randomized to either a carbohydrate-restricted or calorie-restricted diet for 6 months with no change in baseline activity. A repeat H-MRS will be compared to baseline to determine the whether dietary carbohydrate-restriction is superior to calorie-restriction for reducing hepatic TG content. The investigators believe that subjects on the carbohydrate-restricted diet will have marked decrease in hepatic TG content compared to those in the calorie-restricted diet given the same degree of reduction in body mass index.

Study identification

NCT ID
NCT02358928
Recruitment status
Completed
Study type
Interventional
Phase
Not applicable
Enrollment
24 participants

Conditions and interventions

Eligibility (public fields only)

Age range
11 Years to 17 Years
Sex
All
Healthy volunteers
Healthy volunteers not accepted

This page does not interpret eligibility. Detailed inclusion and exclusion criteria are on the official ClinicalTrials.gov record.

Study timeline

Start date
Jun 30, 2014
Primary completion
Aug 17, 2016
Completion
Aug 17, 2016
Last update posted
Jan 27, 2022

2014 – 2016

United States locations

U.S. sites
1
U.S. states
1
U.S. cities
1
Facility City State ZIP Site status
UTexasSouthwestern/Childrens Medical Center Dallas Texas 75234

Site contact phone numbers, emails, and investigator names are intentionally not displayed here. Open the official ClinicalTrials.gov record for site contact information.

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About this trial record page

What this page shows
Public field values for ClinicalTrials.gov record NCT02358928, including study identification, conditions, interventions, eligibility (age, sex, healthy volunteer), timeline, and U.S. site list.
What this page does not do
No medical advice, eligibility judgments, treatment recommendations, study quality scoring, or AI-generated medical summaries. No site contact phone numbers, emails, or investigator names.
Where the data comes from
Sourced from the official ClinicalTrials.gov public API. The official record is the source of truth.
Last refresh
Last update posted Jan 27, 2022 · Synced Sep 1, 2026

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Open the official record

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