Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Randomized Controlled Trial
. 2012 Mar 1;6(2):310-9.
doi: 10.1177/193229681200600214.

Mobile phone-based video messages for diabetes self-care support

Amanda M Bell  1 , Stephanie J Fonda, M Susan Walker, Virginia Schmidt, Robert A Vigersky
Affiliations
Randomized Controlled Trial

Mobile phone-based video messages for diabetes self-care support

Amanda M Bell et al. J Diabetes Sci Technol. .

Abstract

Background: This study examined whether mobile phone-based, one-way video messages about diabetes self-care improve hemoglobin A1c (A1C) and self-monitoring of blood glucose (SMBG).

Methods: This was a 1-year prospective randomized trial with two groups. The active intervention lasted 6 months. The study enrolled 65 people with A1C >8.0% who were established (>6 months) patients in the endocrinology clinics of the Walter Reed Health Care System. Participants were randomized to receive "usual care" or self-care video messages from their diabetes nurse practitioner. Video messages were sent daily to cell phones of study participants. Hemoglobin A1c and SMBG data were collected at 0, 3, 6, 9, and 12 months.

Results: Participants who received the messages had a larger rate of decline in A1C than people who received usual care (0.2% difference over 12 months, adjusting for covariates; p = .002 and p = .004 for the interaction between time and group and for the quadratic effect of time by group, respectively). Hemoglobin A1c decline was greatest among participants who received video messages and viewed >10 a month (0.6% difference over 12 months, adjusting for covariates; p < .001 for the interaction between time and group and the quadratic effect). Self-monitoring of blood glucose metrics were not related to the intervention.

Conclusions: A one-way intervention using mobile phone-based video messages about diabetes self-care can improve A1C. Engagement with the technology is an important predictor of its success. This intervention is simple to implement and sustain.

PubMed Disclaimer

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
CONSORT diagram.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Mean change in A1C from baseline, by treatment group and over time. Change = later A1C – baseline A1C. (A) Two main treatment groups, video messages vs usual care. (B) Viewership groups within the video messages group, with the usual care group indicated as reference [note that this line is identical to the line in (A)]. The intervention ended at 6 months.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. The effect of intensive treatment of diabetes on the development and progression of long-term complications in insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus. The Diabetes Control and Complications Trial Research Group. N Engl J Med. 1993;329(14):977–986. - PubMed
    1. Intensive blood-glucose control with sulphonylureas or insulin compared with conventional treatment and risk of complications in patients with type 2 diabetes (UKPDS 33). UK Prospective Diabetes Study (UKPDS) Group. Lancet. 1998;352(9131):837–853. - PubMed
    1. Hoerger TJ, Segel JE, Gregg EW, Saaddine JB. Is glycemic control improving in U.S. adults? Diabetes Care. 2008;31(1):81–86. Epub 2007 Oct 12. - PubMed
    1. Wagner J, Malchoff C, Abbott G. Invasiveness as a barrier to self-monitoring of blood glucose in diabetes. Diabetes Technol Ther. 2005;7(4):612–619. - PubMed
    1. Vincze G, Barner JC, Lopez D. Factors associated with adherence to self-monitoring of blood glucose among persons with diabetes. Diabetes Educ. 2004;30(1):112–125. - PubMed

Publication types

MeSH terms