Department of Health Management, Institute of Management, Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg, Nuremberg, Germany.
Machine Learning and Data Analytics Lab, Department Artificial Intelligence in Biomedical Engineering, Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg, Erlangen, Germany.
J Med Internet Res. 2022 Oct 19;24(10):e36767. doi: 10.2196/36767.
Patients' knowledge was found to be a key contributor to the success of therapy. Many efforts have been made to educate patients in their disease. However, research found that many patients still lack knowledge regarding their disease. Integrating patient education into social media platforms can bring materials closer to recipients.
The aim of this study is to test the effectiveness of patient education via Instagram.
A randomized controlled trial was conducted to test the effectiveness of patient education via Instagram among patients with inflammatory bowel disease. Participants were recruited online from the open Instagram page of a patient organization. The intervention group was educated via Instagram for 5 weeks by the research team; the control group did not receive any educational intervention. The knowledge about their disease was measured pre- and postintervention using the Inflammatory Bowel Disease Knowledge questionnaire. Data were analyzed by comparing mean knowledge scores and by regression analysis. The trial was purely web based.
In total, 49 participants filled out both questionnaires. The intervention group included 25 participants, and the control group included 24 participants. The preintervention knowledge level of the intervention group was reflected as a score of 18.67 out of 24 points; this improved by 3 points to 21.67 postintervention. The postintervention difference between the control and intervention groups was 3.59 points and was statistically significant (t=-4.56, 95% CI 1.98-5.19; P<.001). Results of the regression analysis, accounting for preintervention knowledge and group heterogeneity, indicated an increase of 3.33 points that was explained by the intervention (P<.001).
Patient education via Instagram is an effective way to increase disease-related knowledge. Future studies are needed to assess the effects in other conditions and to compare different means of patient education.
German Clinical Trials Register DRKS00022935; https://tinyurl.com/bed4bzvh.
患者的知识被认为是治疗成功的关键因素。人们已经做出了许多努力来教育患者了解他们的疾病。然而，研究发现许多患者仍然缺乏对疾病的了解。将患者教育整合到社交媒体平台可以使材料更接近接受者。
本研究旨在测试通过 Instagram 进行患者教育的效果。
进行了一项随机对照试验，以测试通过 Instagram 对炎症性肠病患者进行患者教育的效果。参与者通过患者组织的开放 Instagram 页面在线招募。研究团队通过 Instagram 对干预组进行了 5 周的教育；对照组未接受任何教育干预。使用炎症性肠病知识问卷在干预前后测量他们对疾病的了解。通过比较平均知识得分和回归分析来分析数据。试验完全基于网络进行。
共有 49 名参与者填写了两份问卷。干预组包括 25 名参与者，对照组包括 24 名参与者。干预组干预前的知识水平反映为 24 分中的 18.67 分；干预后提高了 3 分达到 21.67 分。对照组和干预组之间的干预后差异为 3.59 分，具有统计学意义（t=-4.56，95%CI 1.98-5.19；P<.001）。回归分析结果，考虑到干预前的知识和组间异质性，表明干预可使知识增加 3.33 分（P<.001）。
通过 Instagram 进行患者教育是提高疾病相关知识的有效方法。需要进一步的研究来评估在其他情况下的效果，并比较不同的患者教育方法。
德国临床试验注册处 DRKS00022935；https://tinyurl.com/bed4bzvh。
