Adolescent idiopathic scoliosis is the most common spinal deformity in children and can significantly impact the psychological health of affected teenagers. Despite this, there are few effective psychological treatments available for this population. Cognitive and behavioral strategies show promise in addressing the challenges associated with the condition and its treatment. Chatbots could serve as an accessible and effective tool to support the psychological health of these teenagers.
Using the Centre for eHealth Research and Disease Management Roadmap as a guide, a chatbot-based structured psychological intervention has been developed. This intervention incorporates cognitive and behavioral strategies and aims to improve the psychological health of teenagers with adolescent idiopathic scoliosis. The current phase involves implementing the intervention and conducting a pilot test to assess its feasibility, acceptability, and preliminary effectiveness.
The study will employ a pilot randomized controlled trial design, nested with qualitative interviews. Participants will be recruited from community health organizations in Hong Kong and will be randomly assigned to either a control group or an intervention group using block randomization. The intervention group will engage with the chatbot-based structured psychological intervention for eight consecutive weeks. The control group will interact with a different generative chatbot, participating in casual conversations at a similar frequency. Quantitative assessments will be conducted at three points: baseline, immediately after the intervention, and one month after the intervention. Additionally, qualitative interviews will be held with selected participants from the intervention group at post-intervention to explore their experiences and perceptions of the intervention process.
Have a Cobb angle (a standard method for measuring spinal curvature) greater than 10 degrees;
Exhibit mild to moderate levels of depression, anxiety, or stress (scoring between 7-13 on the depression subscale, 6-12 on the anxiety subscale, or 12-16 on the stress subscale of the Depression Anxiety Stress Scales for Youth);
Be aged between 10 and 18;
Be proficient in Cantonese and traditional Chinese character reading;
Have a diagnosis of psychiatric disorders or serious physical diseases;
Are currently undergoing other psychological interventions;
Are on a surgery waiting list or in the perioperative period (from seven days before to seven days after surgery);
Are unable to provide consent for study participation;