Background: The purpose of the study is to evaluate the effectiveness of mobile health technology such as private social network (PCOS system) in creating awareness about the disease management among the women diagnosed with the polycystic ovarian syndrome.
Methods: A pilot study was conducted in Tabuk, Saudi Arabia. The study was carried out for a period of three months using a private social network as an intervention. The private social network is used as an interface to educate and create awareness among the participants in the study. Fifty women diagnosed with PCOS were randomly selected and were distributed in to control group (doesn't use PCOS system) and intervention group (use the private social network). The level of the polycystic ovarian syndrome awareness was measured using a structured questionnaire at the beginning and end of the follow-up period.
Results: More than 80 posts and 10 pictures contain data about PCOS were conveyed by medical staff. Also, about 120 private SMS messages between medical staff and the patients were refined. The after effects of this investigation demonstrated that the intervention had better awareness about polycystic ovary syndrome management compared to the control group (F =18.25; P<0.0001).
Conclusions: This study of the private social network among the PCOS patients demonstrated that mobile health technology such as the private social network can substantially enhance the PCOS disease awareness levels among Saudi women. The PCOS System can also help in reducing the costs as most of the disease management process is handled over the application through the messages and feedbacks is provided through the application, and in saving time by avoiding hospital visits. This study is first-of-its kind conducted in Saudi Arabia.
Keywords: Polycystic ovarian syndrome; mobile health; social network.
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