Trial reportAmerican journal of clinical dermatology2018
Piloting the Use of Smartphones, Reminders, and Accountability Partners to Promote Skin Self-Examinations in Patients with Total Body Photography: A Randomized Controlled Trial.
Trial report in American journal of clinical dermatology, 2018. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. It is linked to trial NCT02520622 (Evaluation of the Impact of Using Digital Photographs on a Mobile Device Versus Printed Photographs on Patient Conducted Skin Exams), which is not on this map. Cited by 8 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Evaluation of the Impact of Using Digital Photographs on a Mobile Device Versus Printed Photographs on Patient Conducted Skin Exams
Who cites it
8 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it.
- Dropout Rate in Digital Health Interventions for the Prevention of Skin Cancer: Systematic Review, Meta-analysis, and Metaregression.Journal of medical Internet research · 2022Pooled it
- Smartphone Applications in Dermatology With Special Focus on AI: A European-Continent-Based Review.International journal of dermatology · 2026Review
- Standardized Clinical Photography for Improving Dermatological Treatment Adherence (Scoping Review): Evidence Landscape and Research Gaps.Clinical, cosmetic and investigational dermatology · 2026Review
- Article
- Participant recruitment and retention in randomised controlled trials of melanoma surveillance: A scoping review.Contemporary clinical trials communications · 2025Review
- Digital interventions for promoting sun protection and skin self-examination behaviors: A systematic review.Preventive medicine reports · 2022Review
- [Artificial intelligence and smartphone program applications (Apps) : Relevance for dermatological practice].Der Hautarzt; Zeitschrift fur Dermatologie, Venerologie, und verwandte Gebiete · 2020Review
- Prevalence and Age-Related Patterns in Health Information-Seeking Behaviors and Technology Use Among Skin Cancer Survivors: Survey Study.JMIR dermatologyArticle
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
5 authors.
Funding
Abstract
objectiveThe aim of this study was to evaluate the use of a mobile application (app) in patients already using total body photography (TBP) to increase skin self-examination (SSE) rates and pilot the effectiveness of examination reminders and accountability partners.
designRandomized controlled trial with computer generated randomization table to allocate interventions.
settingUniversity of Pennsylvania pigmented lesion clinic.
participants69 patients aged 18 years or older with an iPhone/iPad, who were already in possession of TBP photographs.
interventionA mobile app loaded with digital TBP photos for all participants, and either (1) the mobile app only, (2) skin examination reminders, (3) an accountability partner, or (4) reminders and an accountability partner.
main outcome measureChange in SSE rates as assessed by enrollment and end-of-study surveys 6 months later.
resultsEighty one patients completed informed consent, however 12 patients did not complete trial enrollment procedures due to device incompatibility, leaving 69 patients who were randomized and analyzed [mean age 54.3 years, standard deviation 13.9). SSE rates increased significantly from 58% at baseline to 83% at 6 months (odds ratio 2.64, 95% confidence interval 1.20-4.09), with no difference among the intervention groups. The group with examination reminders alone had the highest (94%) overall satisfaction, and the group with accountability partners alone accounted for the lowest (71%).
conclusionA mobile app alone, or with reminders and/or accountability partners, was found to be an effective tool that can help to increase SSE rates. Skin examination reminders may help provide a better overall experience for a subset of patients.
trial registrationClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT02520622.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
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