Effect of Mobile Application Usage on Drug Compliance After Thyroidectomy

Summary: Thyroidectomy is frequently used in the treatment of multinodular goiter, graves' disease, multinodular toxic goiter, and thyroid malignancies in general surgery practice. The thyroid gland plays an important role in the rate of metabolism. As a result of removal of the thyroid gland, patients may experience hormonal problems. In thyroidectomy patients, hypothyroidism develops directly due to removal of the thyroid gland; Complications due to parathyroid gland damage, such as hypocalcemia, may also be encountered.

In the management of complications in the postoperative period, monitoring of thyroid hormone and calcium levels is of vital importance in patients. In the case of calcium deficiency in patients, calcium replacement is performed. Levothyroxine replacement is applied to correct thyroid hormone deficiency. When the optimal dose of levothyroxine is adjusted and used appropriately, the rate of side effects is very low. Although the appropriate dose for the patients is determined in the process, thyroid hormone stabilization has the potential to deteriorate over the years.

Medication incompatibility is an important problem in thyroidectomy patients who need to receive levothyroxine replacement throughout their lives. Many studies evaluating drug compliance in the literature have been conducted with samples of internal medicine patients. However, drug compliance after thyroidectomy is an acute and important condition. There is a need for interventions to increase drug compliance in this patient group.

Today, mobile applications are becoming a new trend among technological approaches that increase the patient and nurse contact. However, no study has been found in the literature examining the use of mobile applications and drug compliance and drug level monitoring in thyroidectomy patients. In our randomized controlled study, data will be collected from two patient groups, the experimental and control groups, and the effectiveness of the reminder mobile application will be evaluated. While no additional intervention was applied to the patients in the control group; Patients in the experimental group will be provided to use the Reminder Mobile Application. At the end of the study, it is predicted that the Reminder Mobile Application will increase drug compliance and complication management of patients after thyroidectomy.