Actively Recruiting
Fast In-Bed Tracking (FIT) System Lifestyle Intervention is a Clinical Trial of a Bed Scale Device. Overweight Wheelchair Users Will Participate in a Weight Loss Program, Half Will Receive Bed Scales, and Participants Who Receive the Bed Scales Are Expected to Have Increased Weight Loss.
Led by Jonathan Pearlman · Updated on 2026-02-23
92
Participants Needed
1
Research Sites
80 weeks
Total Duration
On this page
Sponsors
J
Jonathan Pearlman
Lead Sponsor
E
Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD)
Collaborating Sponsor
AI-Summary
What this Trial Is About
This project will complete the final design and development steps to commercialize the Fast In-Bed Tracking (FIT) Platform, which is an e-Health and wellness Internet of Things (IoT) monitoring system that can be integrated into a user's bed and provide person-centered, real-world outcomes to support health and wellness. The technical feasibility of FIT was proven over the past several years and has demonstrated the platform can support the treatment of several chronic conditions across different populations, including obesity, congestive heart failure, and pressure injuries. The project goals will be to (1) complete design refinements for FIT and (2) demonstrate the platform's efficacy to support weight loss goals of wheelchair users. Wheelchair users are twice as likely as the general population to be overweight or obese and excess weight not only exacerbates mobility and participation limitations but increases risk for secondary health problems. Evidence reveals that frequent weight monitoring is a key driver for weight management, which puts wheelchair users at a significant disadvantage, because they have no convenient way to measure their body weight. As a recent example, lack of participant's ability to self-weigh was a noted limitation to a weight loss program for wheelchair users, known as the Group Lifestyle Balance weight loss program Adapted for Individuals with Impaired Mobility (GLB-AIM). FIT solves this challenge by passively monitoring a user's weight when they get on and off their bed. The investigators lab and community-based feasibility trials demonstrated that FIT successfully tracks weight for individuals and couples sharing a bed and that users find FIT highly usable. This proposed project will allow the investigators to complete the design refinements participants recommended during our community-based feasibility trial and subsequently examine the efficacy of FIT in supporting the weight-loss goals of community-dwelling wheelchair users through a randomized controlled trial using the GLB-AIM.
CONDITIONS
Official Title
Fast In-Bed Tracking (FIT) System Lifestyle Intervention is a Clinical Trial of a Bed Scale Device. Overweight Wheelchair Users Will Participate in a Weight Loss Program, Half Will Receive Bed Scales, and Participants Who Receive the Bed Scales Are Expected to Have Increased Weight Loss.
Who Can Participate
Eligibility Criteria
You may qualify if you...
- Age 18 years or older
- Live within approximately 75 miles of Pittsburgh
- Use a wheelchair as primary means of locomotion
- Currently transfer in and out of bed every night or most nights
- Diagnosed as obese or overweight
- Interested in losing weight
- BMI approximately 25 to 40, with condition-specific adjustments as applicable
- Own a smartphone with reliable internet and Wi-Fi connection
- Comfortable using exercise equipment like resistance bands or hand pedal exercisers
- Able and willing to engage in moderate intensity exercise
- Combined weight in bed including sleep partner estimated at 600 pounds or less
- Do not have a regular way to weigh themselves and are willing to avoid weighing during the trial
- Have autonomy in decision-making as determined by the Everyday Autonomy Self-Determination Scale
- Bedroom setup compatible with the FIT bed scales as determined by the Bed Determination Survey
You will not qualify if you...
- Planned extended vacations or absences over 2 to 4 weeks in the next year or plans to move about 75 miles or more from Pittsburgh
- BMI outside the desired range based on condition as determined by the study team
- Currently taking weight loss medications, appetite-affecting medications, or had weight loss surgery in the last 2 years
- History of disordered eating in the last 2 years such as Anorexia Nervosa, Bulimia Nervosa, or Binge Eating Disorder
- Currently pregnant or planning to become pregnant in the next 12 months
- Regularly consume 4 or more alcoholic drinks daily
- Have cognitive conditions limiting decision-making or self-governing
- Lack autonomy in decision-making as determined by the Everyday Autonomy Self-Determination Scale
- Bedroom setup not compatible with the FIT bed scales as determined by the Bed Determination Survey
AI-Screening
AI-Powered Screening
Complete this quick 3-step screening to check your eligibility
Trial Site Locations
Total: 1 location
1
University of Pittsburgh, Bakery Square, Department of Rehabilitation Science and Technology
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States, 15206
Actively Recruiting
Research Team
D
Daniel Rusnak, MS
CONTACT
J
Jonathan Pearlman, PhD
CONTACT
How is the study designed?
Study Type
INTERVENTIONAL
Masking
NONE
Allocation
RANDOMIZED
Model
PARALLEL
Primary Purpose
OTHER
Number of Arms
2
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