Participant Engagement and Weight Loss in the National Diabetes Prevention Program before and during COVID

The CDC’s National Diabetes Prevention Program (NDPP) aims to prevent or delay type 2 diabetes (T2D) through lifestyle change and weight loss. Due to challenges implementing in-person programs during the COVID-19 pandemic, many CDC-recognized organizations transitioned to offer the NDPP virtually. This analysis used NDPP data collected as part of routine care at Scripps Health, a large, non-profit health system in San Diego, CA. There were 273 individuals who participated in the NDPP before COVID (in-person sessions; October 2016 - January 2020) and 73 during COVID (virtual sessions; August 2020 - June 2021). Participants who attended virtually and in-person were, on average, 59.59±12.71 and 59.90±13.93 years old, and the majority were women (69% and 83%), White (65% and 45%), married (81% and 62%), and college graduates (66% and 44%), respectively. Chi-square, Fisher’s exact, and unpaired t-tests examined differences between the in-person vs. virtual cohorts. Compared to in-person, virtual participants consisted of significantly more men (31% vs. 17%, p= .01), but fewer Hispanics (14% vs. 43%, p< .01), Spanish-speakers (1% vs. 17%, p < .05), individuals with less than high school education (0% vs. 18%, p < .05), and individuals with household income of less than $24,000 (1% vs. 17%, p < .05). While the number of core sessions attended was not significantly different (M=20.19 vs. M=18.82; p> .05), average percent weight loss was significantly lower for individuals in the virtual sessions than in the in-person sessions (M=3.35 vs. M=4.50; p= .05). Although the NDPP has continued to reach participants despite the pandemic’s challenges, participation by racial and ethnic minority and socioeconomically disadvantaged individuals declined when the program transitioned to virtual delivery. More research is needed to examine patient-centered approaches to improve outcomes and engage underserved communities that are disproportionately affected by prediabetes and T2D. Disclosure E.San diego: None. M.Chichmarenko: None. E.Soriano: None. S.R.Spierling bagsic: None. N.Orendain: None. A.L.Fortmann: Employee; Dexcom, Inc. M.Ruiz: None. A.Philis-tsimikas: Advisory Panel; Dexcom, Inc., Novo Nordisk A/S, Sanofi, Other Relationship; Medtronic, Research Support; Novo Nordisk A/S, Lilly, Viking Therapeutics, NIH - National Institutes of Health. Funding National Institutes of Health (UL1TR002550, KL2TR002552)