mHealth-Based Self-Management Program for Patients With Rheumatoid Arthritis: A Pilot Randomized Controlled Study.
Hyunjin Oh, Chang-Hee Suh, Ji-Won Kim and 1 others
PMID 39498761WHAT IT FOUND
Quality of life and disease activity did not differ between groups, though nurse-led mHealth self-management improved knowledge, confidence controlling symptoms, perceived health, depression levels and physical activity at some time points.
Key findings
01Self-efficacy for controlling symptoms was higher in the mHealth group at posttest (46.73 vs 41.07) and follow-up (48.58 vs 40.91).
02Knowledge of RA health effects was higher in the mHealth group at posttest (9.82 vs 8.86, p=0.023).
03Quality of life did not differ significantly between groups at posttest (p=0.193) or follow-up (p=0.054).
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for PTsWhat it means for OTsWhat it means for RNs
Read the rest of this summary
You get three full summaries a month, free, and we do not ask for a card. Search, the TL;DRs and your library stay unlimited either way.
What it does not show
This was a pilot study, and a larger long-term trial is needed to detect effects on disease activity or quality of life. Only 142 of 166 randomly assigned participants completed the study, and follow-up lasted only 4 weeks. The intervention was a bundle of education, exercise, cognitive training, videos and booklets, an e-diary, phone counselling and texts, so the effect of any single component cannot be separated. Physical activity and perceived health were self-reported, and app engagement was not fully measured. The sample was recruited from one hospital in South Korea and was mostly women, so generalisability may be limited. The control group received elastic bands, putty, booklets and a 10-minute education session, so differences reflect the full mHealth bundle rather than no treatment.
Declared interests
The authors declare no conflicts of interest.
The easy way to misread this
Do not conclude that exercise alone caused the improvements. The mHealth arm included education, exercise, cognitive training, videos and booklets, an e-diary, weekly phone counselling and tailored texts, so the contribution of any single component cannot be separated. Do not treat the program as proven to improve quality of life or disease activity.