Is There a Good App for That? Evaluating m-Health Apps for Strategies That Promote Pediatric Medication Adherence

Youth perspectives on mobile health adherence interventions: A qualitative study guided by the supportive accountability model

OBJECTIVE

We applied a Supportive Accountability Model lens to understand how youth view remote human coaching versus automated reminders targeting medication adherence.

METHODS

We used thematic analysis to interpret (N = 22) youths' responses to semi-structured interviews after 12 weeks of mobile health intervention.

RESULTS

Participants reported that both coaching and automated reminders prompted them to take medication, improving their adherence. Participants found coaching helpful because they developed routines and strategies, were motivated to avoid disappointing their coach, and felt their coach cared for them. Automated support could be motivational for some but demanded less engagement. Participants described phone calls as disruptive to their daily lives, but conducive to developing a personal connection with their coach, whereas texts were easier and more flexible. Youth emphasized that individual preferences often differ.

CONCLUSION

Human coaching was viewed as a more potent, engaging adherence intervention than automated reminders, although individual needs and preferences differed. Phone calls may enhance the experience of supportive accountability for adherence, but also pose greater acceptability and usability barriers than texting.

PRACTICE IMPLICATIONS

Intervention developers should provide opportunities for youth to make personal connections with human adherence supporters and attend to youth preferences for communication modality.

Evaluation criteria for health apps supporting medication adherence in early-stage technology development - a scoping review

Introduction

Health apps offer an approach to improve the patients' management of their medication. Although the Digital Healthcare Act (DVG) has created a claim in the statutory health insurance (SHI), the large number of health apps available and their varying quality make it difficult for service providers and especially for medical laypersons to select an adequate high-quality medication app. Manufacturers need guidance for the development of high-quality apps right from the start. Various general evaluation concepts for health apps have been available to date. However, the requirements that should be met by healthcare depend largely on the field of application and the type of apps. This article aims to provide an overview of the international evidence on specific criteria for the evaluation of medication apps.

Methods

Within the framework of a scoping review, a systematic search was conducted in PubMed and EMBASE on January 29, 2020. The search was limited to publications from 2007 onwards as well as to English and German articles. Additionally, a semi-systematic research of reference lists of the previously included articles as well as a structured search of websites of relevant stakeholders were conducted. Inclusion criteria were the following: the publication deals with health apps that can be used on smartphones and focus on supporting medication intake; the publication does not refer to evaluation criteria for a single app exclusively. The included publications were examined in a qualitative content analysis searching for evaluation criteria and categorizing them according to the framework criteria of the DVG and the Digital Health Applications Ordinance (DiGAV).

Results

2,542 articles were identified in the systematic search (999 in PubMed, 1,543 in EMBASE, 560 duplicates). A total of 16 studies met the inclusion criteria. The semi-systematic research and the structured search identified one further study. A catalog of criteria was developed based on the included 17 studies. This catalog covers the general topics "patient orientation" (data protection and security, consumer protection, user friendliness) and "quality/core functions of medication apps" (reminder, self-monitoring, (drug) information, motivation to change behavior, drug/patient safety, robustness) as well as "interoperability/cooperation". Due to its specific importance for medication apps, the subcategory "motivation for behavioral change" stands out beneath the general topic "quality/core functions of medication apps". This category aims to evaluate the design of individual functions with regard to their potential to actually change the behavior of app users.

Discussion

The criteria for the evaluation of health apps mentioned in the DiGAV intersected with the criteria identified in the literature research. However, the area of positive health care effects was hardly covered by the included studies. In the development of the criteria catalog, it was not possible to weight the identified criteria. Therefore, the catalog should be understood as a supporting checklist for service providers, manufacturers, and/or users.

Conclusions

A large variety of possible evaluation criteria for medication apps could be shown. Future research should focus on the possibilities of weighting these diverse evaluation criteria, using not only clinical studies but also methods to identify preferences.

Building MedVenture - A mobile health application to improve adolescent medication adherence - Using a multidisciplinary approach and academic-industry collaboration

Objective

Mobile health (mHealth) tools are increasingly used to support medication adherence yet few have been designed specifically for the pediatric population. This paper describes the development of a medication adherence application (MedVenture) using the integration of patient and healthcare provider input, health behavior theory, and user engagement strategies for adolescents with chronic gastrointestinal disease.

Methods

MedVenture was created by a multidisciplinary research team consisting of a gastroenterologist, a social health psychologist, software developers, and digital health researchers. Healthcare providers and adolescent patients were interviewed to identify barriers to medication adherence, explore ways that technologies could best support medication adherence for both patients and providers, and determine user requirements and core design features for a digital health tool. Intervention mapping was used to match themes from qualitative content analysis to known efficacious adherence strategies, according to a conceptual framework based on self-determination theory. Iterative design with review by the research team and two rounds of user testing informed the final prototype.

Results

Three themes were identified from content analysis: 1) lack of routine contributes to nonadherence, 2) adolescents sometimes purposefully forgo medications, and 3) healthcare providers would prefer a tool that promotes patient self-management rather than one that involves patient-provider interaction. These findings, combined with evidence-based adherence and user engagement strategies, resulted in the development of MedVenture – a game-based application to improve planning and habit formation.

Conclusions

Academic-industry collaboration incorporating stakeholders can facilitate the development of mobile health tools designed specifically for adolescents with chronic disease.

Text Messaging Adherence Intervention for Adolescents and Young Adults with Chronic Kidney Disease: Pilot Randomized Controlled Trial and Stakeholder Interviews

Background

Up to one-third of adolescents and young adults (11-21 years old) with chronic kidney disease exhibit suboptimal rates of adherence to renal-protective antihypertensive medications. Mobile health interventions may promote higher adherence to these medicines in these individuals, but empirical research is needed to inform best practices for applying these modalities.

Objective

In this multiphase investigation, we developed and tested a theoretically informed text messaging intervention based on the COM-B model, a well-established health intervention framework stating that capability, opportunity, and motivation interactively modify health behaviors, to improve participants’ antihypertensive medication adherence in a pilot randomized controlled trial. Qualitative data on user experiences were obtained.

Methods

In phase 1, intervention messages (Reminder+COM-B Message) were developed via stakeholder engagement of participants and pediatric nephrologists. In phase 2, the Reminder+COM-B Message intervention was tested against a Reminder-only Message active control condition in an 8-week pilot randomized controlled trial. The primary outcome was daily electronically monitored antihypertensive medication adherence and secondary outcomes included pre-post participant surveys of adherence self-efficacy, adherence barriers, outcome expectancies for taking medicine, and motivation for and importance of taking medicine. In phase 3, qualitative interviews related to user experiences were conducted with participants in the Reminder+COM-B Message intervention group.

Results

Following phase 1, 34 participants (mean age 16.59 years, 41% female, 38% African American/Black, 35% hypertension diagnosis) completed the phase 2 pilot randomized controlled trial (n=18 in the Reminder+COM-B Message intervention group, n=16 in the Reminder-only Message active control group). All participants in the Reminder+COM-B Message intervention group completed a phase 3 qualitative interview. Overall, study procedures were feasible and the Reminder+COM-B Message intervention was acceptable to the participants (eg, 15/18 participants reported reading the majority of messages sent to them, 0/18 reported that the messages reduced their desire to take medicine). Prerandomization, there were no significant group differences in the rate of change in daily adherence over time. However, postrandomization, there was a significant group by time interaction (B=.01, P=.04) in which daily adherence decreased significantly over time in the Reminder-only Message active control group but remained stable in the Reminder+COM-B Message intervention group. There were no significant differences between groups in pre-post changes in survey responses. Qualitative interviews revealed participants’ perceptions of how the Reminder+COM-B Message intervention changed adherence behavior and highlighted several areas for improving the intervention (eg, adapt messaging timing, intensity, and content to match daily adherence, send praise when medicine is taken).

Conclusions

The Reminder+COM-B Message intervention was feasible and acceptable to adolescents/young adults and demonstrated potential to promote participants’ daily medication adherence beyond simple reminders. Further research is needed to determine the Reminder+COM-B Message intervention’s mechanisms of adherence behavior change and to incorporate qualitative participant feedback into a modified version of this intervention to enhance its acceptability.

Trial Registration

ClinicalTrials.gov NCT03651596; https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT03651596

A new age intervention to support medication adherence

Adherence to pharmacological treatments is a complex behaviour which is influenced by a number of factors throughout a person's medication use journey. No single intervention has yet been shown to effectively address non-adherence long term. Technology, which can support a multifaceted intervention targeted to the needs of a person, may present a feasible solution to optimise adherence. Technological interventions such as mobile applications (apps) have shown early promise, increasing medication adherence rates and providing health care practitioners with an opportunity to monitor and measure adherence. Some of their features include providing informational messages, saving prescription details and sending refill reminders. Their inability to address patient specific factors across the three phases of adherence (initiation, implementation and discontinuation) limit their usefulness in clinical practice. We propose recommendations to guide the design of digital interventions that can support adherence. Interventions should be individualised to address patient specific factors that affect adherence to medications; the features should support individuals across all three phases of adherence. Interventions must integrate within existing prescriber and dispensing software and interconnect all members of an individual's healthcare team. Finally, to ensure optimal outcomes for the individual, all digital interventions should inform the person about why adherence is necessary.

An approach to revising mHealth interventions for children and families: A case example in sickle cell disease

Frameworks for developing mHealth interventions that are informed by the end-user and improve accessibility are necessary to ensure interventions meet the needs of the intended population and advance the science of health behavior change. The approach described in this paper addresses a gap in the mHealth development literature by describing a step-by-step method for evaluating and revising the mHealth interventions for health behavior change in child-parent dyads. Furthermore, this approach introduces the Website Analysis and MeasureMent Inventory framework as an initial coding structure for analyzing qualitative data to gauge appeal and enhance engagement of intervention for end-users. This method uses specific considerations for child-parent dyads and details an example in the development and refinement of a mobile application for self-management in children with sickle cell disease. This approach is translatable to populations of children with other chronic conditions and to other health behaviors.

Use of gamification strategies and tactics in mobile applications for smoking cessation: a review of the UK mobile app market

OBJECTIVE

Mobile phone-based interventions have been proven to be effective tools for smoking cessation, at least in the short term. Gamification, that is, the use of game-design elements in a non-game context, has been associated with increased engagement and motivation, critical success factors for long-term success of mobile Health solutions. However, to date, no app review has examined the use of gamification in smoking cessation mobile apps. Our review aims to examine and quantify the use of gamification strategies (broad principles) and tactics (on-screen features) among existing mobile apps for smoking cessation in the UK.

METHODS

The UK Android and iOS markets were searched in February 2018 to identify smoking cessation apps. 125 Android and 15 iOS apps were tested independently by two reviewers for primary functionalities, adherence to Five A smoking cessation guidelines, and adoption of gamification strategies and tactics. We examined differences between platforms with χ² tests. Correlation coefficients were calculated to explore the relationship between adherence to guidelines and gamification.

RESULTS

The most common functionality of the 140 mobile apps we reviewed allowed users to track the days since/until the quit date (86.4%). The most popular gamification strategy across both platforms was performance feedback (91.4%). The majority of apps adopted a medium level of gamification strategies (55.0%) and tactics (64.3%). Few adopted high levels of gamification strategies (6.4%) or tactics (5.0%). No statistically significant differences between the two platforms were found regarding level of gamification (p>0.05) and weak correlations were found between adherence to Five A's and gamification strategies (r=0.38) and tactics (r=0.26).

CONCLUSION

The findings of this review show that a high level of gamification is adopted by a small minority of smoking cessation apps in the UK. Further exploration of the use of gamification in smoking cessation apps may provide insights into its role in smoking cessation.

Content and Usability Evaluation of Medication Adherence Mobile Applications for Use in Pediatrics

OBJECTIVE

The objective of this study was to systematically evaluate commercially available medication adherence apps for the inclusion of behavior change techniques (BCTs) and to conduct a usability analysis on a subset of apps with adolescents and young adults living with a chronic illness.

METHODS

Medication adherence apps were identified via a search of iTunes app store in August 2016. Seventy-five apps meeting initial inclusion criteria were independently coded by two researchers for the presence/absence of 26 BCTs. Twenty adolescents and young adults (ages: 13-20 years) with inflammatory bowel disease conducted usability testing on a subset of apps (n = 4).

RESULTS

Across 75 apps coded for presence/absence of 26 BCTs, only 7 unique BCTs were identified. The number of BCTs per app ranged from 2 to 6, with an average of 3.3 BCTs. In usability testing, quality ratings varied across apps. Medisafe received the highest average scores on engagement, functionality, aesthetics, and information subscales. Medisafe and MyTherapy ranked first and second, respectively, on overall quality and perceived impact ratings.

CONCLUSION

Content evaluation revealed only a limited number of BCTs that have been translated to medication adherence apps. Among apps with comparable content, clear user preferences emerged based on perceived quality and usability. Greater collaboration is needed between psychologists and health technologists to incorporate more evidence-based BCTs in apps. Findings also indicate a need for app developers to consider and incorporate the preferences of younger end users to improve app quality and engagement for pediatric populations.

Effective Engagement of Adolescent Asthma Patients With Mobile Health-Supporting Medication Adherence

Background

Mobile health (mHealth) apps have the potential to support patients’ medication use and are therefore increasingly used. Apps with broad functionality are suggested to be more effective; however, not much is known about the actual use of different functionalities and the effective engagement.

Objective

The aim of this study was to explore the use and the effective engagement of adolescents (aged 12 to 18 years) with the Adolescent Adherence Patient Tool (ADAPT).

Methods

The ADAPT intervention consisted of an app for patients, which was connected to a management system for their pharmacist. The aim of the ADAPT intervention was to improve medication adherence and, therefore, the app contained multiple functionalities: questionnaires to monitor symptoms and adherence, medication reminders, short movies, pharmacist chat, and peer chat. For this study, data of the ADAPT study and a cluster randomized controlled trial were used. Adolescents with asthma had 6 months’ access to the ADAPT intervention, and all app usage was securely registered in a log file.

Results

In total, 86 adolescents (mean age 15.0, SD 2.0 years) used the ADAPT app 17 times (range 1-113) per person. Females used the app more often than males (P=.01) and for a longer period of time (P=.03). On average, 3 different functionalities were used, and 13% of the adolescents used all functionalities of the app. The questionnaires to monitor symptoms and adherence were used by most adolescents. The total app use did not affect adherence; however, activity in the pharmacist chat positively affected medication adherence (P=.03), in particular, if patients sent messages to their pharmacist (P=.01).

Conclusions

mHealth apps for adolescents with asthma should contain different functionalities to serve the diverging needs and preferences of individual patients. Suggested key functionalities to promote use and effectiveness in adolescents with asthma are questionnaires to monitor symptoms and a health care provider chat.

Design and development of a mobile app of drug information for people with visual impairment

BACKGROUND

People with visual impairment presents difficulties to access the labels information of medicines. In this sense, technological tools can contribute to improve access to this information and the appropriate use of medicines in this population. However, currently, in Colombia, there are no tools to facilitate this process.

OBJECTIVE

To design and development of a mobile app of drug information for people with visual impairment, which allows them to access information for the appropriate use of medicines.

METHODS

A user-centered design process is carried out in four phases was used: a) Identification the needs and barriers for appropriate use of medicines; b) Lifting of requirements, c) Interface design and prototyping, and development of the mobile app, and d) Usability test.

RESULTS

The study involved 48 people with visual disability, of which 69% required assistance for the use of medicines. The main barriers identified were access to information and dosing. A total of ten user requirements were identified, based on these and international accessibility standards FarmaceuticApp was designed and developed, incorporating the problems that were identified in the usability test.

CONCLUSION

A mobile app of drug information for people with visual impairment using a user-centered design process was designed and developed, highlighting the importance of involving the users and other stakeholders in the design and development m-health technologies. FarmaceuticApp could contribute to the appropriate use of medicines and improve therapeutic adherence, as well as autonomy and independence in people with visual impairment.

Pain relief in the palm of your hand: Harnessing mobile health to manage pediatric pain

The development and implementation of mobile health (mHealth) interventions provide an opportunity for more optimal management of pediatric pain in the home setting. Leveraging the popularity, mobility, and technological capabilities of digital mobile devices may reduce pediatric pain. Several mHealth applications have already been developed that target the reduction of acute and chronic pediatric pain by digitally delivering intervention strategies in an engaging manner, accumulating pain assessment data, facilitating patient-provider communication, and providing interactive training. Although several mHealth programs have begun to make strides in the management of pediatric pain, there are still many more possibilities for improvement as greater development and adoption of mHealth practices is on the horizon. Recommendations are provided that advocate for continued advancement of pediatric pain mHealth implementation with an emphasis on robust scientific evaluation, a structured approach to development and design elements that enhance engagement. Increased awareness about the positive influence of mHealth along with the encouragement of researchers and healthcare providers to promote and develop mHealth programs has the potential to transform pediatric pain management. This merger of evidence-based pain management strategies and digital technology positions pediatric mHealth to have a profound impact by effectively augmenting standard of care and benefiting healthcare providers, parents, and especially children in need.

The App Behavior Change Scale: Creation of a Scale to Assess the Potential of Apps to Promote Behavior Change

BACKGROUND

Using mobile phone apps to promote behavior change is becoming increasingly common. However, there is no clear way to rate apps against their behavior change potential.

OBJECTIVE

This study aimed to develop a reliable, theory-based scale that can be used to assess the behavior change potential of smartphone apps.

METHODS

A systematic review of all studies purporting to investigate app's behavior change potential was conducted. All scales and measures from the identified studies were collected to create an item pool. From this item pool, 3 health promotion exerts created the App Behavior Change Scale (ABACUS). To test the scale, 70 physical activity apps were rated to provide information on reliability.

RESULTS

The systematic review returned 593 papers, the abstracts and titles of all were reviewed, with the full text of 77 papers reviewed; 50 papers met the inclusion criteria. From these 50 papers, 1333 questions were identified. Removing duplicates and unnecessary questions left 130 individual questions, which were then refined into the 21-item scale. The ABACUS demonstrates high percentage agreement among reviewers (over 80%), with 3 questions scoring a Krippendorff alpha that would indicate agreement and a further 7 came close with alphas >.5. The scale overall reported high interrater reliability (2-way mixed interclass coefficient=.92, 95% CI 0.81-0.97) and high internal consistency (Cronbach alpha=.93).

CONCLUSIONS

The ABACUS is a reliable tool that can be used to determine the behavior change potential of apps. This instrument fills a gap by allowing the evaluation of a large number of apps to be standardized across a range of health categories.

Transition and transfer of the patient with paediatric-onset lupus: a practical approach for paediatric and adult rheumatology practices

The prevalence of paediatric-onset SLE (pSLE) is estimated at 1million people worldwide and accounts for a significant proportion of SLE morbidity, mortality and cost. Patients with pSLE are especially vulnerable during and immediately following transfer from paediatric to adult rheumatology care, when substantial delays in care and increased disease activity are common. Transition is the process through which adolescents and young adults (AYA) develop the skills needed to succeed in the adult healthcare environment, a process that typically takes several years and may span a patient's time in paediatric and adult clinics. Recommendations for improving transition and transfer for AYA with pSLE include setting expectations of the AYA patient and family concerning transition and transfer, developing AYA's self-management skills, preparing an individualised transition plan that identifies a date for transfer, transferring at a time of medical and social stability, coordinating communication between the paediatric and adult rheumatologists (inclusive of both a medical summary and key social factors), and identifying a transition coordinator as a point person for care transfer and to monitor the AYA's arrival and retention in adult rheumatology care. Of paramount importance is empowering the adult rheumatologist with skills that enhance rapport with AYA patients, engage AYA patients and families in adult care models, promote adherence and encourage ongoing development of self-management skills.

Medication Adherence Apps: Review and Content Analysis

BACKGROUND

Medication adherence is an expensive and damaging problem for patients and health care providers. Patients adhere to only 50% of drugs prescribed for chronic diseases in developed nations. Digital health has paved the way for innovative smartphone solutions to tackle this challenge. However, despite numerous apps available claiming to improve adherence, a thorough review of adherence apps has not been carried out to date.

OBJECTIVE

The aims of this study were to (1) review medication adherence apps available in app repositories in terms of their evidence base, medical professional involvement in development, and strategies used to facilitate behavior change and improve adherence and (2) provide a system of classification for these apps.

METHODS

In April 2015, relevant medication adherence apps were identified by searching the Apple App Store and the Google Play Store using a combination of relevant search terms. Data extracted included app store source, app price, documentation of health care professional (HCP) involvement during app development, and evidence base for each respective app. Free apps were downloaded to explore the strategies used to promote medication adherence. Testing involved a standardized medication regimen of three reminders over a 4-hour period. Nonadherence features designed to enhance user experience were also documented.

RESULTS

The app repository search identified a total of 5881 apps. Of these, 805 fulfilled the inclusion criteria initially and were tested. Furthermore, 681 apps were further analyzed for data extraction. Of these, 420 apps were free for testing, 58 were inaccessible and 203 required payment. Of the 420 free apps, 57 apps were developed with HCP involvement and an evidence base was identified in only 4 apps. Of the paid apps, 9 apps had HCP involvement, 1 app had a documented evidence base, and 1 app had both. In addition, 18 inaccessible apps were produced with HCP involvement, whereas 2 apps had a documented evidence base. The 420 free apps were further analyzed to identify strategies used to improve medication adherence. This identified three broad categories of adherence strategies, reminder, behavioral, and educational. A total of 250 apps utilized a single method, 149 apps used two methods, and only 22 apps utilized all three methods.

CONCLUSIONS

To our knowledge, this is the first study to systematically review all available medication adherence apps on the two largest app repositories. The results demonstrate a concerning lack of HCP involvement in app development and evidence base of effectiveness. More collaboration is required between relevant stakeholders to ensure development of high quality and relevant adherence apps with well-powered and robust clinical trials investigating the effectiveness of these interventions. A sound evidence base will encourage the adoption of effective adherence apps, and thus improve patient welfare in the process.

MedAd-AppQ: A quality assessment tool for medication adherence apps on iOS and android platforms

BACKGROUND

With the recent proliferation of smartphone medication adherence applications (apps), it is increasingly more difficult for patients and clinicians to identify the most useful app.

OBJECTIVE

To develop a quality assessment tool for medication adherence apps, and evaluate the quality of such apps from the major app stores.

METHODS

In this study, a Medication Adherence App Quality assessment tool (MedAd-AppQ) was developed and two evaluators independently assessed apps that fulfilled the following criteria: availability in English, had at least a medication reminder feature, non-specific to certain disease conditions (generic apps), free of technical malfunctions and availability on both the iPhone Operating System (iOS) and Android platforms. Descriptive statistics, Mann-Whitney U test, Pearson product moment correlation and Spearman rank-order correlation were used for statistical analysis.

RESULTS

MedAd-AppQ was designed to have 24 items (total 43 points) categorized under three sections: content reliability (11 points), feature usefulness (29 points) and feature convenience (3 points). The three sections of MedAd-AppQ were found to have inter-rater correlation coefficients of 0.801 (p-value < .001) or higher. Based on analysis of 52 apps (27 iOS and 25 Android), quality scores ranged between 7/43 (16.3%) and 28/43 (65.1%). There was no significant difference between the quality scores of the Android and iOS versions. None of the apps had features for self-management of side effects. Only two apps in each platform provided disease-related and/or medication information.

CONCLUSIONS

MedAd-AppQ can be used to reliably assess the quality of adherence apps. Clinicians can use the tool in selecting apps for use by patients. Developers of adherence apps should consider features that provide therapy-related information and help patients in medications and side-effects management.

Using Home-Program Adherence App in Pediatric Therapy: Case Study of Sensory Processing Disorder

BACKGROUND

Pediatric therapies adopt a family-centered approach that encourages a caregiver's involvement in therapy. Contextual interventions in the child's natural environment have been effective in generalization of skills and increasing of child participation in daily activities. The use of home programs is common across a variety of conditions, but adherence has been challenging. Apps have been demonstrated to promote medication adherence and physical activity maintenance.

INTRODUCTION

This study suggested and tested a construct for features required for caregivers' behavioral modification during home programs in pediatric therapy.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

SensoryTreat is an adherence promoting app for home-program treatments of children with sensory processing disorders. The app was evaluated by testing availability of desired features, usage frequency, impact on adherence with home programs, and parental sense of competence.

RESULTS

Results suggest a strong significant correlation between SensoryTreat usage frequency and families' adherence with home programs, as well as a strong significant correlation between relevancy and usefulness of SensoryTreat's interventional content, and parental competence and their adherence with home programs.

DISCUSSION

Using SensoryTreat twice or more per week increases parental adherence with home programs. Content plays an important role in promoting adherence and parental sense of competence, yet, as usage frequency grows the interventional content habituates, and other features as goal setting and feedback logs have significant impact on parental competence and adherence with home programs over time.

CONCLUSIONS

These findings indicate that the content and features of SensoryTreat app have the potential to promote adherence of families with pediatric therapy home programs.

Long-Term Follow-up of a Randomized Controlled Trial Evaluating a Mobile Health Intervention for Self-Management in Lung Transplant Recipients

Mobile health interventions may help transplant recipients follow their complex medical regimens. Pocket Personal Assistant for Tracking Health (Pocket PATH) is one such intervention tailored for lung transplant recipients. A randomized controlled trial showed Pocket PATH's superiority to usual care for promoting the self-management behaviors of adherence, self-monitoring and communication with clinicians during posttransplant year 1. Its long-term impact was unknown. In this study, we examined associations between Pocket PATH exposure during year 1 and longer term clinical outcomes-mortality and bronchiolitis obliterans syndrome (BOS)-among 182 recipients who survived the original trial. Cox regression assessed whether (a) original group assignment and (b) performance of self-management behaviors during year 1 predicted time to outcomes. Median follow-up was 5.7 years after transplant (range 4.2-7.2 years). Pocket PATH exposure had no direct effect on outcomes (p-values >0.05). Self-monitoring was associated with reduced mortality risk (hazard ratio [HR] 0.45; 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.22-0.91; p = 0.027), and reporting abnormal health indicators to clinicians was associated with reduced risks of mortality (HR 0.15; 95% CI 0.04-0.65; p = 0.011) and BOS (HR 0.27; 95% CI 0.08-0.86; p = 0.026), regardless of intervention group assignment. Although Pocket PATH did not have a direct impact on long-term outcomes, early improvements in self-management facilitated by Pocket PATH may be associated with long-term clinical benefit.