Cost effectiveness of dietitian-led nutrition therapy for people with type 2 diabetes mellitus: a scoping review.

BACKGROUND: The management of diabetes costs in excess of $1.3 trillion per annum worldwide. Diet is central to the management of type 2 diabetes. It is not known whether dietetic intervention is cost effective. This scoping review aimed to map the existing literature concerning the cost effectiveness of medical nutrition therapy provided by dietitians for people with type 2 diabetes. METHODS: Thirteen scientific databases, including MEDLINE, EMBASE and CINAHL, as well as multiple official websites, were searched to source peer-reviewed articles, reports, guidelines, dissertations and other grey literature published from 2008 to present. Eligible articles had to have assessed and reported the cost effectiveness of dietetic intervention for adults with type 2 diabetes in developed countries. Experimental, quasi-experimental, observational and qualitative studies were considered. RESULTS: Of 2387 abstracts assessed for eligibility, four studies combining 22 765 adults with type 2 diabetes were included. Dietetic intervention was shown to be cost-effective in terms of diabetes-related healthcare costs and hospital charges, at the same time as also reducing the risk of cumulative days at work lost to less than half and the risk of disability 'sick' days at work to less than one-seventh. CONCLUSIONS: The findings highlight the importance of advocacy for medical nutrition therapy for people with type 2 diabetes, with respect to alleviating the great global economic burden from this condition. Further studies are warranted to elucidate the factors that mediate and moderate cost effectiveness and to allow for the generalisation of the findings.

A systematic review and meta-analysis of interventions for weight management using text messaging.

BACKGROUND: Obesity prevalence continues to increase worldwide, with significant associated chronic disease and health cost implications. Among more recent innovations in health service provision is the use of text messaging for health behaviour change interventions including weight management. This review investigates the efficacy of weight management programmes incorporating text messaging. METHODS: Medical and scientific databases were searched from January 1993 to October 2013. Eligibility criteria included randomised controlled trials (RCTs), pseudoRCTs and before and after studies of weight management, among healthy children and adults, that used text messaging and included a nutrition component. Data extraction and quality assessment followed guidelines from PRISMA (Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic reviews and Meta-Analyses) and the Evidence Analysis Manual of the American Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics. RESULTS: From 512 manuscripts retrieved, 14 met the inclusion criteria (five manuscripts in children and nine in adults). Duration of interventions ranged from 1 to 24 months. Frequency of text messaging was from daily to fortnightly. Six studies in adults were included in a meta-analysis with mean body weight change as the primary outcome. The weighted mean change in body weight in intervention participants was -2.56 kg (95% confidence interval = -3.46 to -1.65) and in controls -0.37 kg (95% confidence interval = -1.22 to 0.48). CONCLUSIONS: The small body of evidence indicates that text messaging interventions can promote weight loss. However, lack of long-term results indicate that further efficacy studies are required. Future investigations should elucidate the determinants, such as intervention duration, text message frequency and level of interactivity that maximise the success and cost effectiveness of the delivery medium.