Treating Children and Adolescents with Obesity: Predictors of Early Dropout in Pediatric Weight-Management Programs

Background: Possible therapeutic failure of pediatric obesity is influenced by the high dropout rate. The aim of this study was to evaluate the rate of dropout and the rate of weight loss over the 24 months of follow-up. Methods: The retrospective, single-center study, involved 489 patients followed for obesity in the period 2016-2020. Patients' auxological data and blood samples were collected during the first (V1) and last visit (V2). Dropout was defined as a follow-up of less than 12 months and/or including less than one visit every 6 months. Patients were divided into two groups and compared: Group A of dropout (297 patients) and Group B of non-dropout (192 patients). Results: In the follow-up period, which had a mean duration of 24 months, the dropout rate was 60.7%. In Group A, the percentage of patients with BMI ≥ 3 SD at V2 was significantly higher than that in Group B. In Group B, the percentage of patients with pathological HOMA-IR and with fasting glucose >100 mg/dL was higher than group A. The probability of dropout was positively associated with pubertal stage and negatively with impaired fasting glycemia and pathological insulinemia at V1. Conclusion: The study demonstrated a high dropout rate during follow-up, mainly among adolescents and patients with no glucometabolic alterations.