Text messaging intervention for fatigue self-management in people with stroke, spinal cord injury, and multiple sclerosis: A pilot study.

Only 27 people from one Midwestern city were enrolled, and 25 completed, so the results may not generalize to other disability groups, settings, or severities. The study was single-arm and not designed to test intervention effects, so pre-post changes cannot show that the text messages caused improvement. Participants were recruited from previous studies and an independent living center and were generally higher functioning, so they may not represent people with more severe fatigue or disability. The team tracked Friday check-in responses but did not track whether participants read the daily educational messages, so engagement with the content itself is uncertain. The authors state that it is premature to draw conclusions about intervention effect because of the small sample and pilot nature.

The authors declared no conflicts of interest. The paper does not state a funding source. It notes that a research license from Insignia Health was purchased to score the Patient Activation Measure.

Do not read the moderate fatigue effect sizes as proof that the text messages reduce fatigue. This was a single-arm pilot without a control group, and the authors state it is premature to draw conclusions about intervention effect.