Skip to content

MR Fat Quantification and Elastography During a Very Low-calorie-ketogenic Diet (Pronokal Method®) vs a Low Calorie Diet

Pilot Study Fatty Liver and Obesity: MR Fat Quantification and MR Elastography During a Very Low-calorie-ketogenic Diet (Pronokal Method®) Versus a Low Calorie Diet

Status
Completed
Phases
NA
Study type
Interventional
Source
ClinicalTrials.gov
Registry ID
NCT04322110
Enrollment
40
Registered
2020-03-26
Start date
2016-09-12
Completion date
2017-10-25
Last updated
2020-03-26

For informational purposes only — not medical advice. Sourced from public registries and may not reflect the latest updates. Terms

Conditions

Liver Fat

Keywords

Low-Calorie-Ketogenic diet, Low Calorie Diet, Pronokal Method®, Fat reduction

Brief summary

Prospective, multicenter, open-label, randomized and controlled study of the effects of weight loss and reduced visceral fat on non-alcoholic fat infiltration into liver after a very low calorie ketogenic diet (VLCK diet) (Pronokal® Method) versus a hypocaloric diet, with a 6-month follow-up.

Detailed description

The investigators will include obese patients with BMI higher than 30 kg / m2 to follow a standardized multidisciplinary weight-loss program (PronoKal® Method), which consists of a very-low-calorie diet, into which natural foods are gradually reintroduced, accompanied by physical exercise and emotional support, versus hypocaloric diet. The aim of this study are see the reduction of fatty liver, visceral fat and improvement of hepatic stiffness during the weight loss treatment. Patients will be visited monthly and data will recorded on 4 occasions: pre-inclusion, initial visit, 2-months visit (end of ketosis) and 6-months visit. Hepatic fatty infiltration and visceral fat will be scanned by MRI and hepatic stiffness will be assessed by MR Elastography at: baseline, 2 months and 6 months. Also will be recorded anthropometric data (weight, BMI, waist circumference) and complete blood tests.

Interventions

OTHERPronoKal Method

Multidisciplinary program of weight loss based on diet (initially ketogenic diet), physical activity and emotional support

OTHERLow calorie diet

Balanced hypocaloric diet (caloric intake 10% below basal metabolic rate) accompanied by physical exercise.

Sponsors

Protein Supplies SL
Lead SponsorOTHER

Study design

Allocation
RANDOMIZED
Intervention model
PARALLEL
Primary purpose
TREATMENT
Masking
NONE

Eligibility

Sex/Gender
ALL
Age
18 Years to No maximum
Healthy volunteers
No

Inclusion criteria

* Patients of either sex, older than 18 years * Obese patients with BMI equal or over 30kg/m2 * Patients who agree to participate and sign the Informed Consent

Exclusion criteria

* Pregnant or lactating women. * Patients weighing over 140 kg (by limitation of the MRI device) * Patients on anti-obesity drugs (eg, sibutramine, orlistat and liraglutide) or weight-interfering medications (eg, topiramate). In such cases a wash out period of 3 months is required. * Patients with alcohol intake \> 20 g/day in women and \> 30 g/day in men. * Patients with liver failure or with pathologies that may affect the liver * Patients with other causes of liver steatosis: chronic viral hepatitis and/or drug intake (corticosteroids, estrogens, NSAIDs, calcium antagonists, amiodarone, tamoxifen, tetracyclines, chloroquine, antiretrovirals, perhexiline). * Patients with eating disorders. * Patients with any psychiatric disorder (eg schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, substance abuse, severe depression). * Patients receiving dicumarinic anticoagulants (Sintrom®). * Patients taking corticosteroids. * Patients with severe kidney failure (gfr \<30). * Patients with type 1 and type 2 diabetes mellitus. * Patients with hemopathies, including coagulation disorders * Patients with cardiovascular or cerebrovascular disease (of heart rate disorders, recent infarction \[\<6m\], unstable angina, decompensated heart failure, recent stroke \[\<6m\]). * Patients in acute attack of gout. * Patients with renal lithiasis verified by ultrasound. * Patients with cholelithiasis verified by ultrasound. * Patients with electrolyte imbalance, according to medical criteria. * Patients with orthostatic hypotension. * Patients with cancer or history of cancer who have not been discharged from oncology * Patients who are not expected to attend follow-up visits

Design outcomes

Primary

MeasureTime frameDescription
Liver fatty infiltration at 6 months6 monthsLiver fatty infiltration percentage, measured by a MRI technique of fat liver quantification, fat at the end of treatment

Secondary

MeasureTime frameDescription
Visceral fat at 2 months2 monthsViceral fat measured by the area in squared centimeters at the level of the 3rd vertebrae, using MRI technique, at the end of ketosis.
Visceral fat at 6 months6 monthsViceral fat measured by the area in squared centimeters at the level of the 3rd vertebrae, using MRI technique, at the end of treatment.
Liver stiffness at 2 months2 monthsLiver stiffness detected by MR Elastography at the end of ketosis
Liver stiffness at 6 months6 monthsLiver stiffness detected by MR Elastography at the end of treatment
Size of adrenal gland at 2 months2 monthsLinear size in centimetres of adrenal gland at the end of ketosis, measured by MRI.
Liver fatty infiltration at 2 months2 monthsLiver fatty infiltration percentage, measured by a MRI technique of fat liver quantification, at the end of ketosis
Body Weight loss at 2 months2 monthsChange in body weight from baseline to end of ketosis.
Body Weight loss at 6 months6 monthsChange in body weight from baseline to end of treatment.
Salivary cortisol levels at 2 months2 monthsSalivary cortisol levels at the end of ketosis
Salivary cortisol levels at 6 months6 monthsSalivary cortisol levels at the end of treatment
Size of adrenal gland at 6 months6 monthsLinear size in centimetres of adrenal gland at the end of treatment, measured by MRI.

Outcome results

None listed

Source: ClinicalTrials.gov · Data processed: Feb 17, 2026