The Effect of Telerehabilitation-Based Self-Management Programme on Individuals With Scleroderma

Our study endeavoured to develop an online self-management programme facilitated by an interdisciplinary team and to assess its impact on the quality of life, sleep patterns, pain perception, and fatigue levels among individuals diagnosed with scleroderma.

Twenty-nine individuals with scleroderma completed the programme. The study spanned 8 weeks during which participants received weekly 45-min video sessions. Assessment tools included the Scleroderma Health Assessment Questionnaire (SHAQ) for disease severity and pain intensity, the Self-Efficacy Scale for Chronic Disease Patients for self-management evaluation, the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI) for assessing sleep quality, the Fatigue Severity Scale for measuring fatigue severity, and the Short Form-12 Quality of Life Scale (SF-12) for evaluating quality of life.

Self-management score increased significantly, while fatigue score decreased significantly. Feedback from participants indicated a positive perception of the programme and its content, suggesting its usefulness in managing their condition. Feedback from participants indicated a positive perception of the programme and its content, suggesting its usefulness in managing their condition.

The self-management programme, developed collaboratively by an interdisciplinary team and implemented via telerehabilitation, yielded beneficial outcomes concerning self-management skills and fatigue severity among individuals with scleroderma. Strengthening the interdisciplinary composition of the study team by incorporating diverse healthcare professionals may enhance future investigations. Additionally, we advocate for the repetition of the study employing randomised methodologies and implementing long-term follow-up assessments to further elucidate the programme's efficacy and sustainability over time.