MONUCO Milestone: We've Reached 100 Participants!

For those unfamiliar with the project, the MONUCO study (MOnitoring NUtritional COnsequences of Obesity Treatment on women’s health and transgenerational effects for healthier future generations) is a multicentre 10-year prospective observational cohort study. Our aim is to recruit a minimum of 1150 women undergoing either surgical or pharmacological obesity treatment. The primary objective of the MONUCO study is to investigate the consequences of obesity treatment on women’s longer-term health. The main focus is on musculoskeletal health, specifically assessing changes in muscle mass and bone mineral density. Furthermore, within the embedded birth cohort, we are studying the transgenerational consequences of obesity treatment on maternal health, fetal growth, and child development.

Recruitment Update

Inclusion of the first participants began in February 2025, and we have now reached 101 participants, accounting for 8.8% of our overall target.

• Behind the Scenes: The photo shows our dedicated researcher, Rebecca, in action! She's conducting measurements at Vitalys to assess the participants' body composition and muscle strength. Femke and Lara are not on the picture, but play and equally important role in patient recruitment, scheduling measurements, handling samples, checking questionnaires, and many more activities that belong to running such an extensive cohort study.
• The accompanying first figure illustrates the distribution of these 101 participants across different sub-groups, e.g., the ‘DEXA-group’ and the ‘MRI-group’. On top of the standard questionnaires, measurements and biological samples, part of the participants will additionally undergo a DEXA scan of which an even smaller subgroup will go for an MRI scan. The second figure is showing that a greater proportion of women is currently in the surgical treatment trajectory compared to the pharmacological trajectory. We are seeking to extend this pharmacological group any time soon.