Trial reportJournal of medical Internet research2023
Effect of a Wearable Device-Based Physical Activity Intervention in North Korean Refugees: Pilot Randomized Controlled Trial.
Trial report in Journal of medical Internet research, 2023. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 2 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
2 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 5 citations in OpenAlex.
- Use of Digital Health Interventions Among Forcibly Displaced People: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.JAMA network open · 2025Pooled it
- Technology-Enhanced Exercise Training for Cardiometabolic Syndrome: A Scoping Review.Journal of functional morphology and kinesiology · 2026Review
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
11 authors at 3 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundEffective health interventions for North Korean refugees vulnerable to metabolic disorders are currently unelucidated.
objectiveThis study aimed to evaluate the effects of digital health interventions in North Korean refugees using a wearable activity tracker (Fitbit device).
methodsWe conducted a prospective, randomized, open-label study on North Korean refugees aged 19-59 years between June 2020 and October 2021 with a 12-week follow-up period. The participants were randomly assigned to either an intervention group or a control group in a 1:1 ratio. The intervention group received individualized health counseling based on Fitbit data every 4 weeks, whereas the control group wore the Fitbit device but did not receive individualized counseling. The primary and secondary outcomes were the change in the mean daily step count and changes in the metabolic parameters, respectively.
resultsThe trial was completed by 52 North Korean refugees, of whom 27 and 25 were in the intervention and control groups, respectively. The mean age was 43 (SD 10) years, and 41 (78.8%) participants were women. Most participants (44/52, 95.7%) had a low socioeconomic status. After the intervention, the daily step count in the intervention group increased, whereas that in the control group decreased. However, there were no significant differences between the 2 groups (+83 and -521 steps in the intervention and control groups, respectively; P=.500). The effects of the intervention were more prominent in the participants with a lower-than-average daily step count at baseline (<11,667 steps/day). After the 12-week study period, 85.7% (12/14) and 46.7% (7/15) of the participants in the intervention and control groups, respectively, had an increased daily step count (P=.05). The intervention prevented the worsening of the metabolic parameters, including BMI, waist circumference, fasting blood glucose level, and glycated hemoglobin level, during the study period.
conclusionsThe wearable device-based physical activity intervention did not significantly increase the average daily step count in the North Korean refugees in this study. However, the intervention was effective among the North Korean refugees with a lower-than-average daily step count; therefore, a large-scale, long-term study of this intervention type in an underserved population is warranted.
trial registrationClinical Research Information Service KCT0007999; https://cris.nih.go.kr/cris/search/detailSearch.do/23622.
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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.