Trial reportJMIR mHealth and uHealth2021
Usability and Preliminary Effectiveness of a Preoperative mHealth App for People Undergoing Major Surgery: Pilot Randomized Controlled Trial.
Trial report in JMIR mHealth and uHealth, 2021. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. It is linked to trial NCT07510425 (Postoperative Follow-up Via Artificial Intelligence-Based Application Versus Automated Messaging Application in Patients Receiving Continuous Regional Analgesia), which is not on this map. Cited by 21 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.
Postoperative Follow-up Via Artificial Intelligence-Based Application Versus Automated Messaging Application in Patients Receiving Continuous Regional Analgesia: A Comparative Study
Who cites it
21 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 45 citations in OpenAlex.
- Pooled it
- The Effectiveness of the Be Prepared mHealth App on Recovery of Physical Functioning After Major Elective Surgery: Multicenter Randomized Controlled Trial.JMIR mHealth and uHealth · 2025Trial
- Two novel prehabilitation apps to help patients stop smoking and risky drinking prior to hip and knee arthroplasty.International orthopaedics · 2023Trial
- [Evaluation of Multimodal Perioperative Care Pathway Supported by a Patient-facing Mobile App in Colorectal Surgery - First Clinical Experience and Patient Satisfaction].Zentralblatt fur Chirurgie · 2026Observational
- Development of personas to tailor prehabilitation care for patients undergoing cancer surgery: An exploratory study.Internet interventions · 2026Article
- [App-based prehabilitation: implementation and adherence].Chirurgie (Heidelberg, Germany) · 2025Review
- Feasibility of a Comprehensive eCoach to Support Patients Undergoing Colorectal Surgery: Longitudinal Observational Study.JMIR perioperative medicine · 2025Observational
- Validity, Accuracy, and Safety Assessment of an Aerobic Interval Training Using an App-Based Prehabilitation Program (PROTEGO MAXIMA Trial) Before Major Surgery: Prospective, Interventional Pilot Study.JMIR mHealth and uHealth · 2025Article
- Personalized Mobile App-Based Program for Preparation and Recovery After Radical Prostatectomy: Initial Evidence for Improved Outcomes From a Prospective Nonrandomized Study.Journal of medical Internet research · 2024Article
- Usability Testing of a Digitized Interventional Prehabilitation Tool for Health Care Professionals and Patients Before Major Surgeries: Formative and Summative Evaluation.JMIR formative research · 2024Article
- Article
- Digital health coaching to improve patient preparedness for elective lower limb arthroplasty: a quality improvement project.BMJ open quality · 2023Article
- Consumer Perspectives on the Adoption of a Prehabilitation Multimodal Online Program for Patients Undergoing Cancer Surgery.Cancers · 2023Article
- Development of Open Backend Structures for Health Care Professionals to Improve Participation in App Developments: Pilot Usability Study of a Medical App.JMIR formative research · 2023Article
- Clinical feasibility of the Q1.6 Inguinal Hernia application: a prospective cohort study.Hernia : the journal of hernias and abdominal wall surgery · 2023Article
- A Mobile Self-Management App (CanSelfMan) for Children With Cancer and Their Caregivers: Usability and Compatibility Study.JMIR pediatrics and parenting · 2023Article
- Sociodemographic Characteristics Associated With an eHealth System Designed to Reduce Depressive Symptoms Among Patients With Breast or Prostate Cancer: Prospective Study.JMIR formative research · 2022Article
- Perioperative digital behaviour change interventions for reducing alcohol consumption, improving dietary intake, increasing physical activity and smoking cessation: a scoping review.Perioperative medicine (London, England) · 2021Article
- Developing and testing a smoking cessation app in Arabic language: A pilot randomized trial study protocol.Digital healthArticle
- Review
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
11 authors at 5 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundMajor surgery is associated with negative postoperative outcomes such as complications and delayed or poor recovery. Multimodal prehabilitation can help to reduce the negative effects of major surgery. Offering prehabilitation by means of mobile health (mHealth) could be an effective new approach.
objectiveThe objectives of this pilot study were to (1) evaluate the usability of the Be Prepared mHealth app prototype for people undergoing major surgery, (2) explore whether the app was capable of bringing about a change in risk behaviors, and (3) estimate a preliminary effect of the app on functional recovery after major surgery.
methodsA mixed-methods pilot randomized controlled trial was conducted in two Dutch academic hospitals. In total, 86 people undergoing major surgery participated. Participants in the intervention group received access to the Be Prepared app, a smartphone app using behavior change techniques to address risk behavior prior to surgery. Both groups received care as usual. Usability (System Usability Scale), change in risk behaviors 3 days prior to surgery, and functional recovery 30 days after discharge from hospital (Patient-Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System physical functioning 8-item short form) were assessed using online questionnaires. Quantitative data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, chi-square tests, and multivariable linear regression. Semistructured interviews about the usability of the app were conducted with 12 participants in the intervention group. Thematic analysis was used to analyze qualitative data.
resultsSeventy-nine people-40 in the intervention group and 39 in the control group-were available for further analysis. Participants had a median age of 61 (interquartile range 51.0-68.0) years. The System Usability Scale showed that patients considered the Be Prepared app to have acceptable usability (mean 68.2 [SD 18.4]). Interviews supported the usability of the app. The major point of improvement identified was further personalization of the app. Compared with the control group, the intervention group showed an increase in self-reported physical activity and muscle strengthening activities prior to surgery. Also, 2 of 2 frequent alcohol users in the intervention group versus 1 of 9 in the control group drank less alcohol in the run-up to surgery. No difference was found in change of smoking cessation. Between-group analysis showed no meaningful differences in functional recovery after correction for baseline values (β=-2.4 [95% CI -5.9 to 1.1]).
conclusionsThe Be Prepared app prototype shows potential in terms of usability and changing risk behavior prior to major surgery. No preliminary effect of the app on functional recovery was found. Points of improvement have been identified with which the app and future research can be optimized.
trial registrationNetherlands Trial Registry NL8623; https://www.trialregister.nl/trial/8623.
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What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.