SmartMom: Teaching by Texting to Promote Health Behaviours in Pregnancy
- Conditions
- Pregnancy
- Interventions
- Behavioral: Control text messagingBehavioral: SmartMom text messaging
- Registration Number
- NCT05793944
- Lead Sponsor
- University of British Columbia
- Brief Summary
The goal of this randomized clinical trial is to evaluate the effectiveness of SmartMom, a text messaging-based mobile health program for prenatal education. The main questions are to determine if healthy pregnant people receiving SmartMom messages that promote health behaviours in pregnancy versus messages that don't provoke behaviour change have improvement in:
1. knowledge about healthy pregnancy and birth
2. standardized measures of depression, anxiety, and fear of childbirth
3. adoption of positive health behaviours in pregnancy
4. maternal, fetal, and newborn outcomes
Participants in the intervention group will receive three evidence-based text messages per week, plus optional supplemental messages on topics relevant to them, throughout pregnancy.
The control group will receive general interest messages on pregnancy-related topics that are not promoting behaviour change.
- Detailed Description
Not available
Recruitment & Eligibility
- Status
- RECRUITING
- Sex
- Female
- Target Recruitment
- 3078
- pregnant person
- at 15 weeks gestation or earlier
- singleton pregnancy
- can read and understand English at grade 8 level and comfortable completing online surveys
- live in Canada (excluding British Columbia where SmartMom has been piloted)
- health conditions existing prior to pregnancy that require individualized care (e.g. hypertension, cardiac disease, diabetes)
- previously had a baby with the SmartMom program
Study & Design
- Study Type
- INTERVENTIONAL
- Study Design
- PARALLEL
- Arm && Interventions
Group Intervention Description Control messaging Control text messaging Participants receive one text message per week with general information about pregnancy but not about making healthy choices. Intervention: SmartMom messaging SmartMom text messaging Participants receive three text messages per week with evidence-based information to promote healthy behaviours during pregnancy.
- Primary Outcome Measures
Name Time Method Change in weight during pregnancy Enrollment, 38 weeks gestation Rate of pregnancy weight gain in a range appropriate for pre-pregnancy BMI. These include self-reported data as well as data from provincial prenatal registries and the Canadian Hospital Discharge Database linked via personal health number, provided as part of the consenting procedure.
Attendance at prenatal care visits through pregnancy 38 weeks gestation Rates of attendance at prenatal care appointments in adherence to Canadian guidelines. These include self-reported data as well as data from provincial prenatal registries and the Canadian Hospital Discharge Database linked via personal health number, provided as part of the consenting procedure.
- Secondary Outcome Measures
Name Time Method Changes in health knowledge through pregnancy Enrollment, 38 weeks gestation Changes in health knowledge as measured by a 10-item knowledge test. Minimum score = 0, Maximum score = 10. Higher score indicates more knowledge i.e. more positive outcome.
Health literacy at end of pregnancy 38 weeks gestation Health literacy as measured by self-report of i) information-seeking from local health and social services resources; ii) awareness of their choices regarding serum genetic screening; iii) awareness of their choices to have (yes/no) serum glucose screening.
Changes in fear of childbirth through pregnancy Enrollment, 38 weeks gestational age Changes in fear of childbirth as measured by The Childbirth Fear Scale, an 11-item, self-reported measure.
Minimum score = 6, Maximum score = 66. Lower score means less fear, i.e. a more positive outcome.Changes in anxiety through pregnancy Enrollment, 38 weeks gestational age Changes in anxiety as measured by the standardized 33-item Pregnancy Specific Anxiety Tool (PSAT).
Minimum score = 6, Maximum score = 24. Lower score means less anxiety, i.e. a more positive outcome.Changes in use of tobacco, vaping, alcohol, or cannabis through pregnancy among users. Enrollment, 38 weeks gestational age Among participants indicating that they are users of tobacco, vaping, alcohol, and/or cannabis at enrollment, change of use at the end of pregnancy will be measured by self-report.
Report: proportion of users that stopped using per trial arm. Among users continuing to use: mean change in number of daily cigarettes, episodes of vaping, drinks per week, cannabis products per day or other specified use of recreational or prescription drugs used per day.Changes in depression through pregnancy Enrollment, 38 weeks gestational age Changes in depression as measured by the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale. This is a 10-item, self-report screening tool for postnatal depression that is also valid for use during pregnancy.
Minimum score = 0. zero, Maximum score = 30. Lower score means less depression, i.e. a more positive outcome.Rates of planned vaginal birth after cesarean 38 weeks gestation Proportion of participants choosing to plan vaginal birth (VBAC) after a previous cesarean birth, among those deemed eligible by their caregivers.
These include self-reported data as well as data from provincial prenatal registries and the Canadian Hospital Discharge Database linked via personal health number, provided as part of the consenting procedure.Rates of exclusive breastfeeding at hospital discharge 1 month post birth These include self-reported data as well as data from provincial prenatal registries and the Canadian Hospital Discharge Database linked via personal health number, provided as part of the consenting procedure.
Rates of adverse pregnancy outcomes as measured by gestational diabetes, stillbirth, preterm birth (<37 weeks gestation) and small for gestational age (SGA) status at birth. 1 month post birth These include self-reported data as well as data from provincial prenatal registries and the Canadian Hospital Discharge Database linked via personal health number, provided as part of the consenting procedure.
Incremental costs per incidence of suboptimal weight gain and inadequate prenatal care avoided. Throughout pregnancy (up to 42 weeks) and birth, including hospital admission in which birth took place (up to 7 days). Incremental costs per incidence of suboptimal weight gain and inadequate prenatal care avoided for the intervention group when compared to control group as an incremental cost-effectiveness ratio.
Trial Locations
- Locations (1)
BC Children's Hospital Research Institute
🇨🇦Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada