Ultrasound Assessment of Tongue Characteristics in Children and Adolescents With Obesity

Condition(s) studied

Investigational drug(s) / intervention(s)

Submental ultrasound: Tongue ultrasound via a submental approach. This non-invasive, risk-free and harmless protocol will study both morphological and dynamic characteristics of the tongue.

Study summary

This longitudinal observational study aims to validate ultrasound-based tongue markers related to tongue characteristics, including fat accumulation, morphologic and mechanical properties of the tongue in children and adolescents with obesity. Participants are assessed at baseline and after completion of a standardized 30-week inpatient weight-loss rehabilitation program at the Zeepreventorium (De Haan, Belgium). Tongue ultrasound parameters are examined in relation to anthropometric characteristics and obstructive sleep apnea condition.

Eligibility

Primary outcome measure(s)

• Tongue stiffness — at baseline and after 30-weeks weight loss program
  Tongue stiffness is measured by shear-wave elastography and expressed in kPa.
• Intraclass correlation coefficient, ICC — Baseline
  Intraclass correlation coefficient will be used to assess intra and inter-rater reliability of ultrasound markersUltrasound reliability and repeatability of tongue measurements will be assessed with intraclass correlation coefficients (ICC), along with their 95% confidence intervals. Each ultrasound measurement (tongue size and morphological parameters, echo intensity, stiffness, tissue attenuation imaging, tissue scatter distribution imaging, and fat fraction) in sagittal and coronal planes will be performed twice in fifteen participants by the principal investigator, with a 24-hour interval between examinations.

Trial sites (2)

Other trials for the same condition