Effect of Whats App's Education regarding Wound Massage on Post-Thyroidectomy Patients Wound Adhesion and Voice Changes

Background : Neck discomfort and voice change are common complications after thyroidectomy. These symptoms might be due to damaged laryngeal nerves, intrinsic structures, or extra laryngeal muscles. They can also occur without injury to any structure as with wound adhesion after thyroidectomy. This study aimed to determine the effect of Whats App's education regarding wound massage on post-thyroidectomy patients' wound adhesion and voice changes. Design : A quasi-experimental research design was used to accomplish this study (study/ control). Setting : The study was carried out at the General Surgical Department and General Surgical Outpatient Clinic at Sohag University Hospital, Egypt. Subjects : A convenient sampling technique of 50 post-thyroidectomy patients within six months, admitted to the previously mentioned setting were divided into two groups as study (n = 25) and control (n = 25). Tools : Data was collected by using four tools; Tool (I): A structured interview questionnaire, Tool (II): The patient and observer scar assessment scale (POSAS), Tool (III): Voice Handicap Index (VHI-10) questionnaire & Tool (IV): Compliance assessment sheet. Results : The present study revealed that Following the application of Whats App's wound massage education (2 and 4 weeks postoperatively), there were highly statistically significant differences regarding wound adhesion between the two groups (P-value <0.001**) .Following the application of Whats App's wound massage education (2 and 4 weeks postoperatively), there were highly statistically significant differences in voice changes between the two groups (P-value <0.001**) . Also, there were highly statistically significant differences between study and control groups regarding post-thyroidectomy patients' wound adhesion and voice changes after applying the Whats App's education regarding wound massage (2 and 4 weeks postoperatively) (P-value<0.001**). Conclusion : The application of Whats App's education regarding wound massage post-thyroidectomy significantly reduced wound adhesion and improved voice changes in the study group compared to the control group. Recommendations : wound massage is recommended to be an integral part of the pre-operative nursing teaching for patients undergoing thyroidectomy. There is a need to develop comprehensive simple Arabic printed educational materials that can be a reference for them.