ReMonit Gout
Self-management app for patients with gout.
Project Manager
PhD fellow
Postdoc
ABOUT THE PROJECT
Gout is an inflammatory rheumatic disease, characterized by recurrent and highly painful flares. Gout is caused by elevated urate levels in the blood over time, leading to formation of urate crystals, which can cause acute inflammatory reactions in the joints. Effective urate lowering therapy is available. If patients receive adequate doses of urate lowering medication daily, they will stop having flares.
The current follow-up for patients starting urate lowering therapy, includes a consultation with a nurse. The nurse gives information about gout, urate lowering medication, and diet advice. After this, the patient takes monthly blood tests and receives monthly phone consultations with a nurse, until the treatment target is reached.
The app includes information films and texts about gout and gout management, reminders for blood tests and medication, and a graph showing the patient’s urate levels and treatment target. The app also has a function for dose escalation and a chat-function to contact the nurse.
The nurse will monitor the patients progress through a digital platform connected to the app. We are going to test the digital follow-up in a clinical trial (randomised, controlled, non-inferiority trial), to investigate whether the digital follow-up is non-inferior to telephone consultations with a nurse.
WHO CAN JOIN?
Participants will be recruited among adults referred to Diakonhjemmet Hospital, who are diagnosed with gout and starting urate lowering therapy.
Participants have to own a smartphone or tablet and be proficient in Norwegian.
WHAT DOES THE STUDY INVOLVE?
The study lasts for two years. All patients will receive a first consultation with a nurse at Diakonhjemmet Hospital. Patients who consent to participate in the study, will be randomly assigned to one of the two intervention groups:
- A group receiving standard care (control group), including monthly telephone consultation with a nurse.
- A group receiving digital self-management (intervention group), including follow-up with the self-management app Urika and remote digital monitoring by a nurse.
All participants will take blood tests and answer a digital questionnaire at inclusion, and after 1 and 2 years. Additionally, all participants will be asked to answer a short questionnaire every 3 months. Blood tests will be taken every month until the treatment target is reached, and 3 months after the treatment target is reached. All study participants will be asked to take blood tests and come to a consultation with a nurse after 1 year. After this they will receive follow-up by a general practitioner, with blood tests approximately every 6 months. After 2 years the participants will be asked to take blood tests and come to a final consultation with the nurse.
After 1 and 2 years we will investigate if digital self-management is non-inferior to nurse-led telephone consultations in reaching the treatment target. We will also conduct a health economic evaluation.