The effect of telephone consultation and follow-up on pain reduction in Multiple Sclerotic patients: a randomized clinical trial

Introduction: pain is one the symptoms from which many patients with Multiple Sclerosis (MS) suffer. Provision of advice and care to patients with chronic diseases, such as MS, through the counseling process accompanied by telephone follow-up may prove effective in alleviating disease-related symptoms. Hence, the current study was carried out to determine the impact of telephone counseling and follow-up on pain in patients with multiple sclerosis.   Materials and Methods: A randomized clinical trial was conducted on 70 MS patients attending the multiple sclerosis clinic at Sina (Farshchian) Hospital, Hamadan, during 1396. A two-month intervention was administered, with the phone calls organized as follows: Week 1 (two calls revolving around medication schedule Week 2 (two calls about a diet plan, Week 3 (two calls the of exercise schedule، Week 4 (two calls role of stress in MS; and Weeks 5 to 8 (four weekly reminder calls to ensure patient compliance with the contents delivered within the first 4 weeks. pain assessment scale was completed before and after the intervention. The present study has been registered under IRCT2017052734161N1 in Iranian Registry of Clinical Trials.   Findings: pain mean scores for the experimental group showed significant difference before and after the intervention. Also, the comparison of the mean pain severity in the two groups after the intervention showed a significant difference (p <0.001). Conclusion: Provision of telephone counseling together with telephone follow-up is recommended for reducing pain severity in patients with MS. Keywords:  Nursing telephone follow-up, Nursing telephone counseling, pain, multiple sclerosis