Telephone follow-up of patients after radical prostatectomy: a systematic review

OBJECTIVE: to assess and summarize the best scientific evidence from randomized controlled clinical trials about telephone follow-up of patients after radical prostatectomy, based on information about how the phone calls are made and the clinical and psychological effects for the individuals who received this intervention. METHOD: the search was undertaken in the electronic databases Medline, Web of Science, Embase, Cinahl, Lilacs and Cochrane. Among the 368 references found, five were selected. RESULTS: two studies tested interventions focused on psychological support and three tested interventions focused on the physical effects of treatment. The psychoeducative intervention to manage the uncertainty about the disease and the treatment revealed statistically significant evidences and reduced the level of uncertainty and anguish it causes. CONCLUSION: the beneficial effects of telephone follow-up could be determined, as a useful tool for the monitoring of post-prostatectomy patients.