Evaluation of a mobile-application educational intervention on the knowledge, attitude, and practice of patients in postoperative care for lumbar disk herniation surgery: A randomized control trial.

Abstract

We aimed to evaluate the impact of a mobile-based educational program on patients' postoperative care for lumbar disk herniation surgery. A randomized controlled trial was conducted at Fayaz-Bakhsh Hospital, Tehran, Iran. Patients with lumbar disc herniation surgery experience were randomized to the intervention and control groups (learning with the LUmbar CAring Training-app). Participants' knowledge, attitudes, and practices of postoperative care for lumbar disc herniation surgery were assessed using a validated questionnaire at three-time points: pre-test (baseline), post-test one (immediately after program completion), and post-test two (8 weeks after program completion). The primary outcome measures were knowledge, attitudes, and practices scores variations. Secondary outcomes were not considered in our study. In total, 150 patients were enrolled, with 75 patients in each group. Patients in the intervention group demonstrated increased knowledge, modified attitudes, and practice than those in the control group (p < 0.05). The post-test knowledge, attitudes, and practices scores in the intervention group were significantly higher than those in the control group (p < 0.05). Mobile-application-based education was a practical and feasible approach to improve patients' postoperative care for lumbar disc herniation surgery in Iran.