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12-Month Once-a-week HIIT Improves Body Adiposity and Liver Fat

NCT03912272 · Status: COMPLETED · Phase: NA · Type: INTERVENTIONAL · Enrollment: 160

Last updated 2025-03-30

No results posted yet for this study

Summary

Obesity and non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) are two related growing epidemics that are becoming pressing public health concerns. High-intensity interval training (HIIT) is a promising cost-effective and time-efficient exercise modality for managing obesity and NAFLD. However, patients with obesity and NAFLD are generally inactive and unfit, and might feel intimidated by the frequency of the prescribed HIIT (conventionally three times weekly). Previous HIIT studies, mostly over 2-4 month periods, showed that the participants could accomplish this exercise frequency under a controlled laboratory environment, but the long-term adherence and sustainability, especially in a field setting, remains uncertain. The situation is more unclear if we also consider those individuals who refused to participate possibly because of their overwhelming perceptions or low self-efficacy toward HIIT. Thus, logically, HIIT at a lower frequency would be practical and more suitable for patients with obesity and NAFLD, but the minimum exercise frequency required to improve health, especially in the long-term, is unknown. This proposed study aims to examine the effectiveness of long-term low-frequency HIIT for improving body adiposity and liver fat in centrally obese adults. The premise of this proposal is supported by recent findings that HIIT performed once a week could improve cardiorespiratory fitness, blood pressure, cardiac morphology, metabolic capacity, muscle power, and lean mass. This study will provide evidence for the benefits of long-term low-frequency HIIT with a follow-up period to assess its effectiveness, safety, adherence, and sustainability. We expect this intervention will enhance the practical suitability of HIIT in inactive obese adults and will provide evidence for low-frequency HIIT as a new exercise option in the management of obesity and NAFLD.

Conditions

  • Non-Alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease
  • Central Obesity

Interventions

BEHAVIORAL

High-intensity Interval Training

In the high-intensity interval training group, subjects will receive respective prescribed exercise once a week.

BEHAVIORAL

Usual Care Control

In the usual care control group, obesity-related health briefing, dietary caloric restriction advice, and lifestyle counseling/consultation will be provided.

Sponsors & Collaborators

  • The University of Hong Kong

    lead OTHER

Principal Investigators

  • Ming Fai Parco Siu, PhD · Li Ka Shing Faculty of Medicine, The University of Hong Kong

Study Design

Allocation
RANDOMIZED
Purpose
TREATMENT
Masking
SINGLE
Model
PARALLEL

Eligibility

Min Age
18 Years
Max Age
60 Years
Sex
ALL
Healthy Volunteers
No

Timeline & Regulatory

Start
2019-01-01
Primary Completion
2024-09-07
Completion
2024-09-07

Countries

  • Hong Kong

Study Locations

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Read the full study record

This page highlights key information. For complete eligibility criteria, study locations, investigator contacts, and the full protocol, visit the original record on ClinicalTrials.gov.

View NCT03912272 on ClinicalTrials.gov