The acceptability and feasibility of a planned pre-pregnancy weight loss intervention (the Plan-it Study): A Protocol Paper

Background: Women with obesity are at a greater risk of experiencing complications during the antenatal, intrapartum and postpartum periods. Despite many studies of weight management interventions in pregnancy, systematic reviews have demonstrated limited effectiveness, demonstrating a need to increase the focus on preconception health and build a greater awareness of the association between preconception health and maternal and child outcomes. Much of the research in pre-conception weight loss has been with very specific populations or has been small-scale. The aim of the Plan-it study is to establish if it is acceptable and feasible to conduct a study that asks women with overweight/ obesity (BMI of 25 or over) to delay removal of LARC to participate in a targeted pre-pregnancy weight loss intervention. Methods: The study will take a concurrent mixed methods approach incorporating use of routine NHS data and qualitative data collection and analysis across two work-packages: the first will establish the feasibility of defining and understanding the population through routine data and the second will provide an understanding of the feasibility and acceptability to stakeholders (LARC users and practitioners) of incorporating a pre-pregnancy weight loss intervention, in addition to identifying potentially suitable weight loss interventions and the theories underpinning them. The findings from the two work packages will contribute to a final report, which will delineate the key design elements of a future trial or identify the barriers that currently prevent such a trial taking place. Discussion: The preconception period provides an opportunity to intervene with a weight loss intervention in women with overweight/ obesity. The findings of this study will contribute to the evidence base for weight management in the preconception period and provides information, critical to consider, when developing a future intervention and associated feasibility trial