Obesity is a leading contributor to disability. Treatment approaches incorporating telehealth technologies are becoming increasingly popular in treating obesity, but their benefits relative to established behavioural weight loss therapies are poorly understood. The objective of this study was to compare a new telehealth treatment (TeleMOVE) to an established behavioural treatment (MOVE!) among Veterans with obesity.

This was an observational study of Veterans in the TeleMOVE or MOVE! programs between October, 2011 and March, 2013. A total of 699 Veterans enrolled in these programs from 2011–2013. A secondary focus was on Veterans that were ≥90% adherent to their treatment. From this group, 72 (33.1%) TeleMOVE and 141 (29.3%) MOVE! participants met adherence criteria. The primary outcome criterion was changes in body weight.

Both programs were associated with significant weight reductions, with MOVE! participants showing significantly less weight loss relative to those in TeleMOVE (MOVE! mean weight loss=4.5[7.1]lb/2.0[3.2]kg; 1.8% mean weight loss; 12.0% achieving ≥5% weight loss; TeleMOVE mean weight loss=8.6[9.9]lb/3.9[4.5]kg; 3.6% mean weight loss; 26.6% achieving ≥5% weight loss, p’s<.01). Among highly adherent participants, patients in TeleMOVE versus MOVE! lost significantly more weight (TeleMOVE=11.1[9.9]lb/5.0[4.5]kg versus MOVE!=5.7[7.1]lb/2.6[3.2]kg; t=4.6, p<.001) and were significantly more likely to achieve clinically significant weight loss (% with ≥5% weight loss were 43.1% versus 13.5%, respectively, p<.001).

In this observational study, TeleMOVE was at least as effective for weight loss as the more established multidisciplinary MOVE! program.