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Santos-Rocha R, Ferreira M, Pimenta N, Branco M, Oviedo-Caro M, Szumilewicz A. Understanding and Involving the Perspective of Pregnant Women as Users When Designing the Framework of e-Health and Exercise Interventions during Pregnancy: Preliminary Study. Healthcare (Basel) 2024; 12:1121. [PMID: 38891196 PMCID: PMC11172293 DOI: 10.3390/healthcare12111121] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/05/2024] [Revised: 05/25/2024] [Accepted: 05/28/2024] [Indexed: 06/21/2024] Open
Abstract
Health and exercise technology may promote a healthy lifestyle during pregnancy. The objective of this cross-sectional study was to understand and involve the perspective of pregnant women as users in the design of a framework for future e-health and exercise interventions during pregnancy. Pregnant women replied to a questionnaire aimed at understanding their physical activity patterns, needs, and preferences regarding the use of mobile applications (apps). The main results showed that one-third of the women did not practice any type of exercise during pregnancy. Women preferred to exercise in a gym, outdoors, or at home. The majority already had or were currently using a fitness app, but never used any pregnancy-specific app. Most women agreed that it was important to have a specific app for pregnancy to improve knowledge about recommendations on lifestyle, have direct contact with health and exercise professionals, have social interaction with other mothers, and have guidance on preparation for childbirth and postpartum recovery. Understanding and involving the perspective of pregnant women as users will allow researchers to improve the design of a pregnancy-specific app and future e-health and exercise interventions during pregnancy. These preliminary results will lead to the development of the "active pregnancy app" focused on the promotion of an active and healthy lifestyle during pregnancy and postpartum.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rita Santos-Rocha
- ESDRM—Department of Physical Activity and Health, Sport Sciences School of Rio Maior, Santarém Polytechnic University, 2040-413 Rio Maior, Portugal; (M.F.); (N.P.); (M.B.)
- SPRINT—Sport Physical Activity and Health Research and Innovation Center, 2040-413 Rio Maior, Portugal
- CIPER—Interdisciplinary Centre for the Study of Human Performance, Faculty of Human Kinetics (FMH), University of Lisbon, 1499-002 Cruz Quebrada, Portugal
| | - Mariana Ferreira
- ESDRM—Department of Physical Activity and Health, Sport Sciences School of Rio Maior, Santarém Polytechnic University, 2040-413 Rio Maior, Portugal; (M.F.); (N.P.); (M.B.)
| | - Nuno Pimenta
- ESDRM—Department of Physical Activity and Health, Sport Sciences School of Rio Maior, Santarém Polytechnic University, 2040-413 Rio Maior, Portugal; (M.F.); (N.P.); (M.B.)
- SPRINT—Sport Physical Activity and Health Research and Innovation Center, 2040-413 Rio Maior, Portugal
- CIPER—Interdisciplinary Centre for the Study of Human Performance, Faculty of Human Kinetics (FMH), University of Lisbon, 1499-002 Cruz Quebrada, Portugal
| | - Marco Branco
- ESDRM—Department of Physical Activity and Health, Sport Sciences School of Rio Maior, Santarém Polytechnic University, 2040-413 Rio Maior, Portugal; (M.F.); (N.P.); (M.B.)
- SPRINT—Sport Physical Activity and Health Research and Innovation Center, 2040-413 Rio Maior, Portugal
- CIPER—Interdisciplinary Centre for the Study of Human Performance, Faculty of Human Kinetics (FMH), University of Lisbon, 1499-002 Cruz Quebrada, Portugal
| | - Miguel Oviedo-Caro
- Department of Physical Education and Sport, Faculty of Education Sciences, University of Seville, 41080 Seville, Spain;
| | - Anna Szumilewicz
- Faculty of Physical Education, Gdansk University of Physical Education and Sport, 80-336 Gdansk, Poland;
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Cho H, Yi F, Ahn S. Quality evaluation of pregnancy-related mobile applications in South Korea: a descriptive study. KOREAN JOURNAL OF WOMEN HEALTH NURSING 2023; 29:190-199. [PMID: 37813662 PMCID: PMC10565528 DOI: 10.4069/kjwhn.2023.06.20] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/05/2023] [Revised: 06/11/2023] [Accepted: 06/20/2023] [Indexed: 10/11/2023] Open
Abstract
PURPOSE This study aimed to describe the characteristics of mobile applications (apps) related to pregnancy in South Korea and evaluate their quality. METHODS We conducted a systematic search for pregnancy-related apps available in Korea in two app stores as of April 29, 2022. The quality of apps was assessed using the Korean translation of the Mobile Application Rating Scale for objective quality with four subdomains (engagement, function, aesthetics, and information) and four items for subjective quality. RESULTS In total, 163 apps were selected and reviewed. Both the objective and subjective quality of the apps were found to be desirable, with scores exceeding 3 out of 5 (range, 34-82). All subdomain scores in the objective quality assessment were also desirable. Among the four objective quality subdomains, aesthetics received the highest scores, followed by information, function, and engagement. In terms of subjective quality, the scores for a comprehensive overall evaluation, continuous use, and recommendation exceeded 3 out of 5, with the exception of payment. Only a small number of apps (n=4, 2.9%) were backed by a reliable authority, such as an expert review. Significant differences were observed in the objective quality of apps across different content categories (F=3.86, p=.003). CONCLUSION Most pregnancy-related apps had desirable levels of objective and subjective quality. However, app content experts seldom provide reviews. It is crucial for nurses to recommend apps to expectant mothers that offer dependable content, regularly updated with the latest information.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hyunjin Cho
- College of Nursing, Chungnam National University, Daejeon, Korea
| | - Feiyan Yi
- College of Nursing, Chungnam National University, Daejeon, Korea
| | - Sukhee Ahn
- College of Nursing, Chungnam National University, Daejeon, Korea
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Lazarevic N, Pizzuti C, Rosic G, Bœhm C, Williams K, Caillaud C. A mixed-methods study exploring women's perceptions and recommendations for a pregnancy app with monitoring tools. NPJ Digit Med 2023; 6:50. [PMID: 36964179 PMCID: PMC10036977 DOI: 10.1038/s41746-023-00792-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/29/2022] [Accepted: 03/04/2023] [Indexed: 03/26/2023] Open
Abstract
Digital health tools such as apps are being increasingly used by women to access pregnancy-related information. Conducted during the COVID-19 pandemic, this study investigated: (i) pregnant women's current usage of digital health tools to self-monitor and (ii) their interest in theoretical pregnancy app features (a direct patient-to-healthcare-professional communication tool and a body measurement tool). Using a mixed methods approach, 108 pregnant women were surveyed and 15 currently or recently pregnant women were interviewed online. We found that pregnant women used digital health tools to mainly access pregnancy related information and less so to self-monitor. Most participants were interested and enthusiastic about a patient-to-healthcare-professional communication tool. About half of the survey participants (49%) felt comfortable using a body measurement tool to monitor their body parts and 80% of interview participants were interested in using the body measurement to track leg/ankle swelling. Participants also shared additional pregnancy app features that they thought would be beneficial such as a "Digital Wallet" and a desire for a holistic pregnancy app that allowed for more continuous and personalised care. This study highlights the gaps and needs of pregnant women and should inform all stakeholders designing pregnancy digital healthcare. This study offers a unique insight into the needs of pregnant women during a very particular and unique period in human history.
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Affiliation(s)
- Natasa Lazarevic
- Biomedical Informatics and Digital Health, School of Medical Sciences, Faculty of Medicine and Health, The University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW, Australia.
- Charles Perkins Centre, The University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW, Australia.
| | - Carol Pizzuti
- Biomedical Informatics and Digital Health, School of Medical Sciences, Faculty of Medicine and Health, The University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW, Australia
- Charles Perkins Centre, The University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW, Australia
| | - Gillian Rosic
- Charles Perkins Centre, The University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW, Australia
- Nepean Blue Mountains Family Metabolic Health Service, Department of Endocrinology, Nepean Hospital, Sydney, NSW, Australia
| | - Céline Bœhm
- School of Physics, Faculty of Science, The University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW, Australia
| | - Kathryn Williams
- Charles Perkins Centre, The University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW, Australia
- Nepean Blue Mountains Family Metabolic Health Service, Department of Endocrinology, Nepean Hospital, Sydney, NSW, Australia
| | - Corinne Caillaud
- Biomedical Informatics and Digital Health, School of Medical Sciences, Faculty of Medicine and Health, The University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW, Australia.
- Charles Perkins Centre, The University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW, Australia.
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Lazarevic N, Lecoq M, Bœhm C, Caillaud C. Pregnancy Apps for Self-Monitoring: Scoping Review of the Most Popular Global Apps Available in Australia. INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH AND PUBLIC HEALTH 2023; 20:1012. [PMID: 36673768 PMCID: PMC9858738 DOI: 10.3390/ijerph20021012] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/25/2022] [Revised: 01/01/2023] [Accepted: 01/03/2023] [Indexed: 06/17/2023]
Abstract
Digital health tools, such as apps, have the potential to promote healthy behaviours, especially self-monitoring, which can facilitate pregnancy management and reduce the risk of associated pregnancy health conditions. While pregnancy apps are popular amongst pregnant women, there is limited information about the overall quality of their content or self-monitoring tools and the number of behaviour change techniques (BCTs) that they include. The aim of this study was thus to assess the quality of pregnancy apps for self-monitoring, and their usage of BCTs. We identified pregnancy apps by web scraping the most popular global apps for self-monitoring in the Apple App Store and Google Play Store available in Australia. The app quality was evaluated using the scorecard approach and the inclusion of BCTs was evaluated using the ABACUS tool. We identified 31 pregnancy apps that met our eligibility criteria. We found that pregnancy apps tended to score the highest in the domains of 'cost and time', 'usability', and 'technical', and lowest on 'clinical' and 'end-user requirements'. Additionally, the majority of apps contained minimal BCTs. Based on our findings, we propose a digital health scorecard visualisation that would break down app quality criteria and present them in a more accessible way to clinicians and pregnant users. We conclude that these findings highlight the shortcomings of available commercial pregnancy apps and the utility of a digital health scorecard visualisation that would empower users to make more informed decisions about which apps are the most appropriate for their needs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Natasa Lazarevic
- Biomedical Informatics and Digital Health, School of Medical Sciences, Faculty of Medicine and Health, The University of Sydney, Camperdown, NSW 2006, Australia
- Charles Perkins Centre, The University of Sydney, Camperdown, NSW 2006, Australia
| | - Marie Lecoq
- Biomedical Informatics and Digital Health, School of Medical Sciences, Faculty of Medicine and Health, The University of Sydney, Camperdown, NSW 2006, Australia
- Charles Perkins Centre, The University of Sydney, Camperdown, NSW 2006, Australia
- AgroParisTech, Universite Paris-Saclay, CEDEX, 91 123 Palaiseau, France
| | - Céline Bœhm
- School of Physics, Faculty of Science, Physics Building, The University of Sydney, Camperdown, NSW 2006, Australia
| | - Corinne Caillaud
- Biomedical Informatics and Digital Health, School of Medical Sciences, Faculty of Medicine and Health, The University of Sydney, Camperdown, NSW 2006, Australia
- Charles Perkins Centre, The University of Sydney, Camperdown, NSW 2006, Australia
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Carrandi A, Hayman M, Harrison CL. Safety considerations for assessing the quality of apps used during pregnancy: A scoping review. Digit Health 2023; 9:20552076231198683. [PMID: 37675058 PMCID: PMC10478559 DOI: 10.1177/20552076231198683] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/13/2023] [Accepted: 08/15/2023] [Indexed: 09/08/2023] Open
Abstract
Objective Pregnant women are increasingly turning to apps targeting knowledge and behaviour change for supporting healthy lifestyles and managing medical conditions. Yet, there is growing concern over the credibility and safety of content within mobile health (mHealth) apps. This scoping review aimed to systematically and thematically consolidate safety considerations described in reviews evaluating pregnancy-specific apps. Methods PubMed, Ovid MEDLINE® and EPub, CINAHL, Web of Science, Cochrane Libraries, and SCOPUS were systematically searched to identify reviews that assessed apps targeting pregnant women. Data related to safety were extracted and thematically analysed to establish a set of relevant safety considerations. Results Sixteen reviews met the inclusion criteria. The included reviews assessed an average of 27 apps each and targeted pregnancy topics, such as nutrition and physical activity. Five major and 20 minor themes were identified, including information, transparency, credibility, privacy and security, and app tailoring. Information, transparency, and credibility relate to the evidence base of information within the app, privacy and security of apps relate to the protection of personal information and data, and app tailoring relates to the consideration of contextual factors, such as local guidelines and digital health literacy. Conclusions Results present possible safety considerations when evaluating pregnancy-specific apps and emphasise a clear need for consumer guidance on how to make informed decisions around engagement and use of mHealth apps during pregnancy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alayna Carrandi
- Monash Centre for Health Research and Implementation, Monash University, Australia
| | | | - Cheryce L Harrison
- Monash Centre for Health Research and Implementation, Monash University, Australia
- Diabetes and Vascular Medicine, Monash Health, Australia
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Mendi O, Kiymac Sari M, Stoyanov S, Mendi B. Development and validation of the Turkish version of the Mobile App Rating Scale - MARS-TR. Int J Med Inform 2022; 166:104843. [PMID: 35964383 DOI: 10.1016/j.ijmedinf.2022.104843] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/10/2022] [Revised: 06/16/2022] [Accepted: 08/06/2022] [Indexed: 10/15/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND The number of mobile health apps (MHAs) is growing rapidly. MHAs have great potential to improve health and health care. However, the quality of available MHAs remains unknown due to the lack of quality assessment regulations and standards for MHAs. The Mobile Application Rating Scale (MARS) is the most widely used instrument to assess the quality of MHAs, and available in English, Italian, Spanish, German, French, Arabic and Japanese. However, the scale is currently not available in the Turkish language. OBJECTIVE This study aimed to cross-culturally adapt the MARS into Turkish and evaluate the validity and reliability of the scale. METHODS The MARS was translated and adapted into Turkish according to the international guidelines. A total of 52 pregnancy tracking apps were evaluated by two independent raters. Internal consistency (Cronbach's alpha), inter-rater reliability (Intraclass Correlation Coefficient [ICC]), convergent validity and concurrent validity were explored. Regarding convergent validity, MARS-TR scores were compared with the ENLIGHT scale. RESULTS The MARS-TR was highly aligned with the original MARS. The MARS-TR showed excellent internal consistency (Cronbach's alpha of 0.95 for both raters) and excellent inter-rater reliability (ICC = 0.94; SEM = 0.02), with a smallest detectable change (95 % confidence level) of 0.05 points for the total score. Cronbach's alphas for the subscales ranged from 0.76 to 0.94 for the two raters. Correlations between the MARS-TR and ENLIGHT demonstrated adequate convergent validity (P < 0.05). No ceiling or floor effects were observed. CONCLUSION The results provide evidence that the Turkish version of MARS is a valid and reliable tool for researchers and experts to assess the quality of MHAs in Turkey.
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Affiliation(s)
- Onur Mendi
- Faculty of Medicine, Demiroglu Bilim University, Buyukdere Cad. No:120 Esentepe / Sisli, Istanbul, Turkey.
| | - Merve Kiymac Sari
- Florence Nightingale Hospital School of Nursing, Demiroglu Bilim University, Buyukdere Cad. Yazarlar Sok. No:27 Esentepe / Sisli, Istanbul, Turkey.
| | - Stoyan Stoyanov
- School of Design & School of Psychology, Queensland University of Technology (QUT), 5 Cordova Street, Milton, QLD 4064, Australia.
| | - Basak Mendi
- Faculty of Health Sciences, Demiroglu Bilim University, Buyukdere Cad. Yazarlar Sok. No:27 Esentepe / Sisli, Istanbul, Turkey.
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