Evidence map›Paper›PMID 39904717›Full record

ArticleObesity (Silver Spring, Md.)2025

Racial and ethnic disparities in clinical trials for pediatric obesity.

Catherine G Coughlin, Emilie S Zoltick, Fatima Cody Stanford, Mei-Sing Ong

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Obesity (Silver Spring, Md.), 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 1 paper.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
1citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

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.

2 · The registry

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.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

1 citing paper in PubMed.

  1. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

4 authors.

Catherine G CoughlinDivision of Emergency Medicine, Boston Children's Hospital, Boston, Massachusetts, USA.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2441-3363
Emilie S ZoltickDepartment of Population Medicine, Harvard Medical School and Harvard Pilgrim Health Care Institute, Boston, Massachusetts, USA.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7965-9769
Fatima Cody StanfordMassachusetts General Hospital, Massachusetts General Hospital Weight Center, Department of Medicine-Division of Endocrinology-Neuroendocrine, Department of Pediatrics-Division of Endocrinology, Nutrition Obesity Research Center at Harvard (NORCH), Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts, USA.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4616-533X
Mei-Sing OngDepartment of Population Medicine, Harvard Medical School and Harvard Pilgrim Health Care Institute, Boston, Massachusetts, USA.

Funding

ROLE OF DIETARY CONSTITUENTS ON GENE EXPRESSION IN INTESTINAL EPITHELIUMP30DK040561 · NIDDK · MASSACHUSETTS GENERAL HOSPITAL · PI Elizabeth Austen Lawson, Takara Leah Stanley · 1994 to 2026
$31.6M
Creating Opportunities for Unparalleled Researchers to Achieve Growth and Excellence (COURAGE)U24DK132733 · NIDDK · MASSACHUSETTS GENERAL HOSPITAL · PI MORONE, NATALIA E., STANFORD, FATIMA CODY · 2022 to 2025
$3.3M
Accelerating Research Advancement for Investigators Underrepresented in AcademiaUE5DK137285 · NIDDK · MASSACHUSETTS GENERAL HOSPITAL · PI Fatima Cody Stanford, Takara Leah Stanley · 2023 to 2026
$621k
Improving representation of racial and ethnic minorities in pediatric clinical trialsR21MD016984 · NIMHD · HARVARD PILGRIM HEALTH CARE, INC. · PI ONG, MEI-SING · 2022 to 2023
$478k
AHRQ HHS T32 HS000063Foundation for the National Institutes of Health U24DK132733Minority Health and Health Disparities of the National Institutes of Health 1R21MD016984NIDDK NIH HHS P30 DK040561NIDDK NIH HHS U24 DK132733NIDDK NIH HHS UE5 DK137285NIMHD NIH HHS R21 MD016984the Agency for Healthcare and Research Quality AHRQ T32HS000063
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

objectiveThe objective of this study was to examine the representation of historically marginalized racial and ethnic groups in pediatric obesity clinical trials.

methodsWe performed a cross-sectional analysis of clinical trials in pediatric obesity (participants aged ≤18 years) that were registered in ClinicalTrials.gov, were completed from January 2013 to August 2023, and were conducted in the United States. We quantified disparities in trial enrollment by calculating the enrollment-prevalence disparity (EPD) for each racial and ethnic group.

resultsA total of 260 trials met eligibility criteria, of which 128 trials (49.2%) reported race and/or ethnicity data. Enrollment of White, Hispanic, and Black children roughly reflects disease burden in these populations. However, relative to disease burden, Asian (EPD, -3.7%; IQR, -3.7% to 1.8%; p < 0.0001), American Indian and Alaska Native (EPD, -2.1%; IQR, -2.1% to -2.1%; p < 0.0001), and Native Hawaiian or other Pacific Islander (EPD, -0.6%; IQR, -0.6% to -0.6%; p < 0.0001) children were significantly underrepresented in these trials.

conclusionsWith the exception of Black and Hispanic children, historically marginalized racial groups were underrepresented in pediatric obesity trials, signifying a need to improve diversity of participants in these trials. Additionally, there are substantial gaps in the documentation of race and ethnicity information. Concerted efforts are needed to ensure adequate reporting of race and ethnicity information in clinical trials.

Indexed as

Clinical Trials as TopicEthnicityHealthcare DisparitiesPediatric ObesityRacial GroupsAdolescentChildCross-Sectional StudiesFemaleHumansMalePatient SelectionUnited States

Identifiers

PMID39904717
PMCPMC11903186

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceTDM
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

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.