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Article History

Received: 18 August 2019

Accepted: 3 December 2019

First Online: 8 January 2020

Ethics approval and consent to participate

: This protocol (version 1.0, dated 15 March 2019) was approved by the independent Ethics Committee of Xiangyang Central Hospital, the Affiliated Hospital of Hubei University of Art and Science (ID: XYSZXYY-LLDD-PJ-2019-033) and registered (registration date 14 June 2019) at the Chinese Clinical Trial Registry (, identifier ChiCTR1900023841). Research staff will obtain informed consent from the participants prior to the study. On the consent form, participants will be asked if they agree to the use of their data should they choose to withdraw from the trial. Participants will also be asked for permission for the research team to share relevant data with people from the universities taking part in the research or from regulatory authorities, where relevant. This trial does not involve collecting biological specimens for storage. Informed consent is available from the corresponding author on request. There is no anticipated harm and compensation for trial participation. Post-trial care will be provided, and participants will be advised to shift to a normal diet if weight loss targets are reached.

: Written informed consent for publication of their clinical details and/or clinical images will be obtained from the participants. A copy of the consent form is available for review at any stage if required. Participation in this study is strictly confidential. Any information that is published will not reveal the identity of the subjects. The findings of this trial will be submitted to a peer-reviewed journal. Abstracts will be submitted to relevant national and international conferences.

: The authors declare that they have no competing interests.