Acceptability and Feasibility of a Preoperative Very Low Calorie Diet Intervention on Surgical Weight Loss Outcomes (SAFETY)

ClinicalTrials.gov ID: NCT06183034

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Official title

The Study of Acceptability and Feasibility of a Preoperative Very Low Calorie Diet Intervention on Surgical Weight Loss Outcomes (SAFETY)

Brief summary

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

Class 4 obesity is defined as a BMI ≥50Kg/m2, representing approximately ≥150 pounds of excess weight. For patients with Class 4 obesity, metabolic and bariatric surgery (MBS) is the only effective treatment. However, MBS is associated with a higher rate of perioperative morbidity and mortality for patients with Class 4 obesity. Additionally, more patients with Class 4 obesity experience suboptimal weight loss. For patients with Class 4 obesity, preoperative weight loss can reduce the technical difficulty of surgical procedures, rendering MBS safer. Preoperative weight loss may also decrease visceral adipose tissue and liver volume as well as reduce weight-related comorbidities. A very low-calorie diet (VLCD), which involves restricting caloric intake to approximately 800 kcal/day, is one strategy to help patients achieve weight loss preoperatively. Although studies show that a VLCD prior to MBS yields weight loss, reduces liver volume and rates of perioperative complications, most preoperative VLCDs are short (2-8 weeks) with variable adherence. To date, no study has systematically assessed the feasibility and acceptability of a standard 12-week VLCD among patients with BMI ≥50 pursuing MBS. No study has evaluated postoperative weight loss among patients who have undergone a preoperative VLCD. This study will be a single arm trial designed to test the feasibility, acceptability, and preliminary efficacy of a 12-week VLCD program prior to sleeve gastrectomy (SG) and associated weight loss up to 1 year following MBS. The investigators will enroll 24 patients aged 18-70, with a BMI≥50Kg/m2, and are approved for SG. Participants will consume up to 5 meal replacement protein shakes and 2 cups of vegetables daily for 12 weeks. Participants will attend weekly in-person office visits with the clinicians at the Hartford Hospital Medical and Surgical Weight Loss Center in Glastonbury, CT to assess weight loss, physical and mental health, feasibility and acceptability of and adherence to the VLCD. The investigators hypothesize that a 12-week VLCD is feasible in this population, defined as ≥70% (18 out of 24 participants) completing the program. The investigators hypothesize that better attendance at the weekly visits and higher adherence to the diet recommendations will provide greater weight loss preoperatively and percent total weight loss at the completion of VLCD, on the day of MBS, and at 3, 6, and 12 months post-surgery. Findings from this study may lead to additional projects that aim to develop and implement an optimal pre-surgery and post-surgery clinical care model for bariatric patients.

Study identification

NCT ID: NCT06183034
Recruitment status: Not listed
Study type: Interventional
Phase: Not applicable
Lead sponsor: Hartford Hospital; Other
Enrollment: 30 participants

Conditions and interventions

Conditions

Obesity

Interventions

Very Low Calorie Diet Other

Other

Eligibility (public fields only)

Age range: 18 Years to 70 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: Mar 5, 2024 (Estimated)
Primary completion: Oct 31, 2025 (Estimated)
Completion: Dec 30, 2025 (Estimated)
Last update posted: Feb 28, 2024

2024 – 2025

United States locations

U.S. sites: 1
U.S. states: 1
U.S. cities: 1

Facility	City	State	ZIP	Site status
Hartford Hospital	Hartford	Connecticut	06102	—

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

About this trial record page

What this page shows: Public field values for ClinicalTrials.gov record NCT06183034, 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 Feb 28, 2024 · Synced Nov 15, 2026