Study of Serum Markers for Cardiovascular Risk in Obese Youth and Impact of Lifestyle and Medication Intervention

• Status: Completed
• Trial end date: 2011-09-01
• Target enrollment: 0
• Participant gender: All

Summary

In Protocol #2, we will select 30 obese pubertal and 30 obese prepubertal subjects with an abnormal cytokine profile (i.e. fibrinogen and/or hsCRP concentration greater than or equal to 2 Standard Deviations (SD) above the mean established in our lab for lean controls in Protocol #1). They will be randomly assigned to either lifestyle intervention (diet/exercise) or diet/exercise plus metformin for 6 months. After the 6 month evaluation the subjects will cross over the treatment arms, i.e., those that were doing diet/exercise intervention only will add metformin, those that were doing the diet/exercise plus metformin will discontinue the metformin and continue with diet/exercise changes only. Intrahepatic fat contents will be measured as well.

The investigators hypothesize that obese children in these age groups will have increased cardiovascular risk related to their obese state before reaching the currently defined criteria of metabolic syndrome.

The investigators hypothesize that these cardiovascular risks can be reduced with lifestyle and drug interventions.

• Phase: N/A
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers?: Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Details

• Lead Sponsor: Nemours Children's Clinic
• Collaborator: Thrasher Research Fund
• Treatments: Metformin

Criteria

Inclusion Criteria:

• Ages 7-18 years.

• Greater than the 95th percentile body mass index for their age and gender.

• Children are in Tanner Stage I or IV or V.

• Normal Blood Pressure.

• Normal fasting glucose.

• Normal lipids.

• Menstruating girls must have completed their most recent period at least 2 weeks prior to blood draw.

• No recent illness, no chronic illnesses, no routine medications, no smoking or alcohol intake.

• Must pass the screening test done in Protocol #1.

• Must have higher values than normal for certain blood tests related to heart disease that were measured in Protocol #1.

Exclusion Criteria:

• Chronic active illnesses.

• Recent illnesses.

• Use of routine medications, vitamins, herbal remedies, oral contraceptive pills, or other over the counter medications within 4 weeks of blood draw.

• History of recent or chronic smoking.

• Currently pregnant.

• Impaired fasting glucose.

• Dyslipidemia.

• Actively in puberty.

• Weight greater than 300 pounds.

• Metal in the abdomen.

• History of being overweight greater than 5 years.