Use of short message service (SMS) to improve malaria chemoprophylaxis compliance after returning from a malaria endemic area
Malaria chemoprophylaxis compliance is suboptimal among French soldiers despite the availability of free malaria chemoprophylaxis and repeated health education before, during and after deployments to malaria endemic areas.
Methods: In 2007, a randomized controlled study was performed among a cohort of French soldiers returning from Cote d'Ivoire to assess the feasibility and acceptability of sending a daily short message service (SMS) reminder message via mobile device to remind soldiers to take their malaria chemoprophylaxis, and to assess the impact of the daily reminder SMS on chemoprophylaxis compliance. Malaria chemoprophylaxis consisted of a daily dose of 100 mg doxycycline monohydrate, which began upon arrival in Cote d'Ivoire and was to be continued for 28 days following return to France.
Feasibility and acceptability were assessed by questionnaire. Cohort members were followed for a 28 day period, with compliance assessed by use of an electronic medication monitoring device, from which several indicators were developed: daily proportion of compliant individuals, average number of pills taken, and early discontinuation.
ResultsAmong 424 volunteers randomized to the study, 47.6 % were assigned to the SMS group and 52.3 % to the control group. Approximately 90% of subjects assigned to the SMS group received a daily SMS at midday during the study.
Persons of the SMS group agreed more frequently that SMS reminders were very useful and that the device was not annoying. Compliance did not vary significantly between groups across the compliance indicators.
Conclusions: SMS did not increase malaria chemoprophylaxis compliance above baseline, likely because the persons did not benefit from holidays after the return and stayed together.
So the reminder by SMS was noted by all subjects enrolled to the study. Another study should be done to confirm these results on soldiers going on holidays from employment after return or with individual travellers.
Author: Lenaick OllivierOlivier RomandCatherine MarimoutouRemy MichelCorinne PognantAlain TodescoRene MiglianiDominique BaudonJean-Paul Boutin
Credits/Source: Malaria Journal 2009, 8:236
Published on: 2009-10-23
Copyright by the authors listed above - made available via BioMedCentral (Open Access). Please
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