Table 1 PICOS framework.
Population | Adults (≥18 years) with severe obesity (BMI ≥ 35 kg/m2) |
Intervention | Online, group-based interventions aiming to change obesity-related behaviours (physical activity and dietary behaviour) |
Comparator | The review included studies with and without a comparator; there were no restrictions on the type of comparator, if studies included one (e.g. face-to-face, phone, or other online group-based or individual interventions, waitlist control, etc.) |
Outcomes | The primary outcome was the interventions' effectiveness at supporting behaviour change and weight loss. Secondary outcomes included engagement, patient experience, and study and intervention characteristics. |
Study types | To avoid excluding relevant studies and to capture the variety of outcomes we wanted to examine, any type of study evaluating an online, group-based intervention for people with severe obesity was eligible (e.g. randomised controlled trials, quantitative, qualitative, cohort, and case studies). Reviews, protocols, and papers that described interventions without evaluating them were excluded. |
