Postoperative follow-up using smartphone app-assisted monitoring for patients undergoing breast reconstruction
and gynecologic oncology surgery is associated with improved quality of recovery, according to a study published
in JAMA Surgery. Claire Temple-Oberle, MD, and colleagues compared quality of recovery and patient
satisfaction between conventional in-person follow-up and smartphone app-assisted follow-up for patients
following Enhanced Recovery After Surgery Society (ERAS) protocols. The analysis included 72 adult women
undergoing oncologic breast reconstruction or major gynecologic oncology surgery. The app group had
significantly higher mean Quality of Recovery 15 (QOR15) scores than the control group at the 2- and 6-
week time points. On the Patient Satisfaction Questionnaire III, patients showed equal satis-
faction for all subsets at these intervals. Additionally, the groups were similar with respect to
the mean number of complications and surgeon contacts per patient. Surgeons reported appreciation for
early identification of complications through the app. “This randomized clinical trial lends further
support to the use of app-assisted postoperative care,” the study authors wrote. “Postoperative follow-up
that incorporates app-assisted monitoring improves patients’ quality of recovery following oncologic
surgery.”
