Evidence map›Paper›PMID 34348719›Full record

Trial reportBMC health services research2021

Experiences of using a digital type 2 diabetes prevention application designed to support women with previous gestational diabetes.

Winifred Ekezie, Helen Dallosso, Ponnusamy Saravanan, Kamlesh Khunti, Michelle Hadjiconstantinou

Abstract readRandomized Controlled Trial
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Trial report in BMC health services research, 2021. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 13 papers, 3 of them syntheses that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
13citing papers in PubMed, 3 pooled it
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from 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.

2 · The registry

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.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

13 citing papers in PubMed, 3 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.

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4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

5 authors.

Winifred EkezieDiabetes Research Centre, College of Life Sciences, University of Leicester, Leicester General Hospital, Leicester, LE5 4PW, UK.
Helen DallossoNational Institute for Health Research (NIHR), Applied Research Collaboration (ARC) East Midlands, University of Leicester, Leicester, UK.
Ponnusamy SaravananPopulation, Evidence and Technologies, Division of Health Sciences, Warwick Medical School, University of Warwick, Coventry, UK.
Kamlesh KhuntiDiabetes Research Centre, College of Life Sciences, University of Leicester, Leicester General Hospital, Leicester, LE5 4PW, UK.
Michelle HadjiconstantinouDiabetes Research Centre, College of Life Sciences, University of Leicester, Leicester General Hospital, Leicester, LE5 4PW, UK. mh333@le.ac.uk.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundGestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) is diagnosed during pregnancy, and women with a history of GDM are at a higher risk of developing type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). Prevention strategies focused on lifestyle modification help to reduce long-term complications. Self-management technology-based interventions can support behaviour change and diabetes control. The Baby Steps programme, a randomised controlled trial intervention offering group education and access to a mobile web application, was evaluated to explore user experience of the app and barriers and facilitators to app usability.

methodsTen semi-structured interviews and four focus group discussions were conducted with 23 trial participants between 2018 and 2019. Interviews and focus group discussions were audiotaped, transcribed and independently analysed. The analysis was informed by thematic analysis, with the use of the Nvivo 12 software.

resultsThemes identified were: (1) GDM and post-pregnancy support from healthcare services; (2) Impact of Baby Steps app on lifestyle changes; (3) Facilitators and barriers to the usability of the Baby Steps app. The Baby Steps app served as a motivator for increasing self-management activities and a tool for monitoring progress. Peer support and increased awareness of GDM and T2DM enhanced engagement with the app, while poor awareness of all the components of the app and low technical skills contributed to low usability.

conclusionsThis study documents experiences from existing GDM support, user experiences from using the Baby Steps app, and the barriers and facilitators to app usability. The app was both a motivational and a monitoring tool for GDM self-management and T2DM prevention. Peer support was a key trait for enhanced engagement, while barriers were low technical skills and poor awareness of the app components. A digital app, such as the Baby Steps app, could strengthen existing face-to-face support for the prevention of T2DM. The results also have wider implications for digital support technologies for all self-management interventions. Further research on the effect of specific components of apps will be required to better understand the long term impact of apps and digital interventions on self-management behaviours and outcomes.

trial registrationISRCTN, ISRCTN17299860 . Registered on 5 April 2017.

Indexed as

Diabetes, GestationalDiabetes Mellitus, Type 2Mobile ApplicationsSelf-ManagementFemaleHumansPostpartum PeriodPregnancyDigital supportGestational diabetesMhealthPreventionQualitative research methodsType 2 diabetes

Identifiers

PMID34348719
PMCPMC8337145

What Socratic holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

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 Socratic graph.