Therapeutic Effects of a WeChat Mini-Program on Metabolic Dysfunction–Associated Fatty Liver Disease: Randomized Controlled Trial

TL;DR

A WeChat mini-program helped MAFLD patients in China lose weight and improve liver health more effectively than standard care.

Contribution

A scalable, low-cost digital intervention for MAFLD management using a WeChat mini-program was developed and tested in China.

Findings

The intervention group had significantly higher rates of ≥5% and ≥10% weight loss compared to the control group.

Patients in the intervention group showed greater improvements in liver enzymes and metabolic parameters.

The program led to a significant reduction in controlled attenuation parameter (CAP) and FibroScan-aspartate aminotransferase scores.

Abstract

For patients with metabolic dysfunction–associated fatty liver disease (MAFLD), weight loss is advised but challenging in practice. In China, there is a pronounced shortage of tailored digital lifestyle interventions for this population.

This study aimed to assess the effects of a WeChat mini-program-delivered lifestyle intervention on weight loss and hepatic steatosis among individuals with MAFLD who were overweight or obese.

Adults who are overweight or obese and have clinically diagnosed MAFLD with transient elastography examination were enrolled in this prospective randomized controlled trial. Patients were randomly assigned to receive either WeChat mini-program management (intervention group) or standard care (control group) at a 1:1 ratio. The intervention was structured around the development and implementation of personalized diet and exercise plans, supplemented by guided exercise video courses and reinforced through continuous monitoring and informational support. Body weight and clinical parameters were assessed at baseline and then at 6 months.

A total of 89 patients met the inclusion criteria and were randomly assigned to the intervention group (n=45) or control group (n=44). Among the 89 patients with MAFLD, 60% (27/45) of them achieved a weight loss of ≥5%, and 24.4% (11/45) of them had a weight loss of ≥10% in the intervention group, which was greater than those in the control group (27/45 vs 7/44; relative risk [RR] 3.771, 95% CI 1.836‐7.748; P<.001; 11/45 vs 3/44, RR 3.585, 95% CI 1.072‐11.988; P=.02). Importantly, patients receiving the intervention were significantly more likely to achieve a ≥10% reduction or normalization of controlled attenuation parameter (CAP) than those in the control group (26/45 vs 14/44; RR 1.816, 95% CI 1.102‐2.992; P=.01). After adjusting for key baseline covariates, multivariate analysis confirmed the intervention’s positive effect on achieving a weight loss of ≥5% (OR [odds ratio] 8.380, 95% CI 2.886‐24.331; P<.001) of ≥10% (OR 4.612, 95% CI 1.138‐18.686; P=.03), as well as on CAP reduction of ≥10 % or normalization (OR 2.853, 95% CI 1.092‐7.456; P=.03). In parallel, the intervention group presented greater reductions in liver enzymes (alanine aminotransferase, aspartate aminotransferase, and γ-glutamyl transpeptidase) and metabolic parameters (fasting insulin, hemoglobin A1c, and triglyceride) than the control group (all P<.05). According to the fibrosis assessment, only the FibroScan-aspartate aminotransferase score decreased more in the intervention group than in the control group (median difference −0.06, 95% CI −0.13 to −0.01; P=.02), as compared to other non-invasive indicators.

Readily scalable in primary care and varied-resource settings, our WeChat mini-program-based intervention extends beyond weight loss to reduce hepatic steatosis and improve metabolic parameters, thereby addressing the critical gap in targeted MAFLD management in China with a low-cost model for high-burden populations. Nevertheless, larger future studies are needed to confirm these findings with greater precision and assess long-term sustainability.

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