mHealth最新文献

{"title":"Unpacking social and digital determinants of health in Africa: a narrative review on challenges and opportunities.","authors":"Diego F Cuadros, Agnes Kiragga, Le Tu, Susanne Awad, John M Bwanika, Godfrey Musuka","doi":"10.21037/mhealth-24-73","DOIUrl":"10.21037/mhealth-24-73","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background and objective: </strong>Social and digital determinants of health are increasingly recognized as critical drivers of health outcomes, particularly in Africa, where economic disparities, geographic divides, and evolving digital infrastructures present unique challenges. Addressing these determinants is crucial for reducing health inequities and improving access to healthcare across the continent. This review synthesizes the current understanding of social and digital determinants of health within the African context, emphasizing their regional variations, research gaps, and potential interventions.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>A narrative review approach was adopted, conducting a targeted search of literature from databases such as PubMed and Google Scholar, alongside grey literature from organizations like the World Health Organization (WHO). The review focused on studies published between 2000 and 2023, covering social determinants like socioeconomic status, education, and healthcare access, as well as emerging digital determinants such as digital literacy and mobile technology use. Thematic analysis was performed to categorize findings and identify regional variations, particularly in North, sub-Saharan, Eastern, Western, and Central Africa.</p><p><strong>Key content and findings: </strong>The review highlights significant disparities in both social and digital determinants across African regions. Urban-rural divides, economic inequalities, and limited healthcare infrastructure pose persistent challenges. Digital determinants are increasingly influencing health outcomes, with countries like Kenya leading in mobile health innovations, while others, particularly in rural areas, struggle with poor internet penetration. Research gaps were identified, particularly the need for longitudinal data and integration of digital determinants into health surveillance systems like health and demographic surveillance systems (HDSS).</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>Social and digital determinants of health significantly impact health outcomes in Africa. Addressing these disparities through targeted interventions, improved infrastructure, and digital health innovations is essential for reducing inequities. Further research, particularly longitudinal studies, is critical for understanding the evolving role of digital determinants in African healthcare systems and shaping effective public health policies.</p>","PeriodicalId":74181,"journal":{"name":"mHealth","volume":"11 ","pages":"41"},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2025-07-08","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC12314699/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144777123","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Telehealth for primary healthcare delivery in rural and remote contexts in high-income countries-a scoping review.","authors":"Supriya Mathew, Danielle Green, Nicki Newton, Rachel Powell, John Wakerman, Deborah J Russell","doi":"10.21037/mhealth-24-75","DOIUrl":"10.21037/mhealth-24-75","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>Telehealth is an important tool for improving access to health care in underserved areas. This scoping review explores the evidence for implementing telehealth as a mode for delivering primary health care (PHC) consultations by general practitioners (GPs) to rural and remote patients in high income countries.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>Peer reviewed publications were sourced from CINAHL, PubMed, and the Web of Science. The Joanna Briggs Institute's (JBI) methodology for scoping reviews was followed. Data from each paper were coded deductively to five themes: (I) telehealth structures and processes; (II) patient and provider preferences for telehealth; (III) positive and negative outcomes of telehealth; (IV) characteristics of providers, practices and patients affecting telehealth adoption; and (V) barriers and enablers to the use of telehealth.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>Sixty papers were included. Rural and remote populations accept telehealth because of profound impacts on their otherwise long travel times, high travel costs, logistical difficulties and overcoming the generally lower availability of GPs in these locations. Providing face-to-face GP care to isolated small populations is also resource intensive and limited by GP availability, with provider travel time, travel costs and accommodation costs adding to the overall costs of service provision. The main concerns about telehealth were reduced ability to conduct physical examinations, privacy and data security, heavier clinic workloads and poorer relationships. Telehealth was most acceptable for after-hours and follow-up consultations. Effective telehealth required adequate connectivity and digital infrastructure and training of staff to support the patient and PHC provider, which was especially important if there were cultural differences or communication difficulties. Few studies focussed on the experience of telehealth for First Nations people or use of telehealth for PHC service delivery in remote locations.</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>Telehealth can be used as a supplementary mode for delivering PHC services to improve access and continuity of care in rural and remote locations, especially when there is a pre-existing relationship between the PHC provider and the patient. We recommend identifying contextual indicators and putting in place adequate monitoring and evaluation frameworks if introducing telehealth in rural and remote contexts and in the context of First Nations peoples.</p>","PeriodicalId":74181,"journal":{"name":"mHealth","volume":"11 ","pages":"34"},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2025-06-30","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC12314700/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144777119","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"PeerTECH: a randomized controlled trial of a peer-led mobile health intervention to improve medical and psychiatric self-management for persons with serious mental illness.","authors":"Karen L Fortuna, Sunny Cui, Stephanie Lebby, Haiyi Xie, Martha L Bruce, Stephen J Bartels","doi":"10.21037/mhealth-24-64","DOIUrl":"10.21037/mhealth-24-64","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>Certified peer support specialists (CPSs) can empower individuals with serious mental illness (SMI) to engage with mobile health interventions designed to improve medical and psychiatric self-management. This study pilot-tested PeerTECH, a digital, 12-session intervention adapted from Integrated Illness Management and Recovery and delivered by CPSs, to assess its feasibility, acceptability, and preliminary effectiveness in enhancing self-management among individuals with SMI compared to peer support as usual (PSAU).</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>A two-arm pilot randomized controlled trial was conducted with individuals diagnosed with SMI and at least one medical comorbidity. Participants were randomly assigned to either PeerTECH, a 12-week structured mobile health intervention delivered by CPSs, or PSAU (peer support without mobile technology). Outcome measures related to medical and psychiatric self-management were assessed at baseline and 12 weeks. Data was analysed using linear mixed-effects regression models to compare outcomes between groups. Feasibility and acceptability were evaluated by participant retention rates, intervention adherence, and participant-reported satisfaction.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>The study demonstrated that the randomized control trial design was feasible and acceptable, with 72.73% of approached patients consenting to participate. PeerTECH delivery was engaging, with 90% of participants initiating the intervention, approximately 80% completing it, and participants engaging in text exchanges on 70% of possible days, averaging 10 text exchanges. The intervention was found to be acceptable, with 100% of participants reporting satisfaction, and safe, with no adverse events. Statistically significant improvements were observed in PeerTECH compared to PSAU in physical health outcomes, as measured by the Patient-Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System (PROMIS) Global-10 Physical Health scores (P=0.023). Clinically meaningful improvements in the Integrated Management and Recovery Scale and PROMIS-derived utility scores (EuroQol 5-Dimension Scale, Health Utilities Index) were also observed.</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>The Peer-Led Mobile Health Intervention demonstrated feasibility and effectiveness in enhancing self-management among individuals with SMI and chronic comorbidities.</p><p><strong>Trial registration: </strong>This trial was registered at ClinicalTrials.gov (NCT04481737).</p>","PeriodicalId":74181,"journal":{"name":"mHealth","volume":"11 ","pages":"28"},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2025-06-30","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC12314690/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144777107","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Telehealth and plastic surgery: evaluation of the accessibility of virtual consultations through online resources.","authors":"Alec S McCranie, Evan J Haas, Zain Aryanpour, Katie G Egan, Jason W Yu, Julian Winocour, David W Mathes, Christodoulos Kaoutzanis","doi":"10.21037/mhealth-24-77","DOIUrl":"10.21037/mhealth-24-77","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Telehealth has gained traction since the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS‑CoV‑2) virus [coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19)] pandemic. Telehealth is especially useful in plastic surgery, given the visual nature of many plastic surgery problems. However, research on the accessibility of virtual consultations in plastic surgery is limited. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the accessibility of initial virtual consultations in academic and community-based plastic surgery practices through evaluation of online resources and to discuss the implications of these findings as they apply to patient access to care. We evaluated the websites of academic and community-based plastic surgery practices in the USA. All practices were contacted for confirmation of the availability of virtual consultation. Data was collected on practice characteristics, including region, availability of virtual consultations on practice websites, and types of services offered by community-based programs. Standard statistical analysis was performed using chi-square and Fisher's exact tests. A total of 88 academic and 500 community-based plastic surgery practice websites were evaluated. Community-based practices offered more virtual consultations than academic practices (64.5% <i>vs.</i> 25.0%, P<0.001). As it pertains to telehealth marketing, overall availability of virtual consultations on the websites of academic and community-based practices was lacking and there was no difference between the two groups (21.6% <i>vs.</i> 13.8%, respectively, P=0.06). Community-based practices that offered only cosmetic surgery offered more virtual consultations than those that offered both cosmetic and reconstructive surgery (75.0% <i>vs.</i> 54.0%, P<0.001). Our findings suggest that community-based and academic plastic surgery practices are under-utilizing telehealth and telehealth marketing as it applies to virtual consultations. Despite the widespread adoption of telehealth since the COVID-19 pandemic, there is high variability in the accessibility of virtual consultations in plastic surgery across academic and community-based practices and broader implementation should be considered to increase transparency of services and accessibility to care.</p>","PeriodicalId":74181,"journal":{"name":"mHealth","volume":"11 ","pages":"33"},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2025-06-25","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC12314704/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144777118","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Careful considerations for digital health innovation: developing Nanbar Health-a digital health solution empowering clinical decisions with data-driven insights.","authors":"Arvind Subramaniam, Elizabeth Hensley, Jhana Parikh, Abhinav Gundala, Shannon H Ford, Olivia Fernandez, Caroline Vuong, Nirmish Shah","doi":"10.21037/mhealth-24-91","DOIUrl":"10.21037/mhealth-24-91","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>Digital health tools have grown in their usage and popularity since the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, when healthcare providers were required to find methods of monitoring and engaging with their patients while also practicing social distancing. The process of building any digital product is arduous and complicated, and successful deployment within a healthcare system involves navigating a complex landscape of regulations, cybersecurity requirements, and the unique considerations of each healthcare institution, in addition to managing general product maintenance and adapting to ongoing technological advancements. The aim of this study was to utilize stakeholder feedback to create an improved, modular, scalable, and disease agnostic digital health solution while also identifying common challenges and considerations for deploying health technology.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>Our large interdisciplinary team has been part of several digital health solutions that have been utilized in multiple areas of healthcare. Here, we discuss this journey, lessons learned and describe the recent culmination of this work in the development of Nanbar Health, a digital health solution that integrates patient-reported symptoms via a mobile application, biometrics collected from smartwatches and wearables, and electronic health record (EHR) data to build complex symptom networks and predictive algorithms, all with the goal of better understanding the disease experience of individuals living with various illnesses.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>This article provides details about our previously built tools, methodology, challenges, insights, and the findings our team made during the development process, alongside considerations that should be made during the development and integration of any digital health solution.</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>Nanbar Health is a comprehensive digital health tool developed over multiple years by an interdisciplinary team, utilizing user-centered design, longitudinal data, and predictive algorithms to better understand an individual's illness experiences. The development of such digital health solutions requires extensive planning, efficient multidisciplinary teamwork, and careful consideration of factors needed to build sustainable and modular mobile health (mHealth) apps. Future improvements should focus on developing disease-agnostic solutions, improving data capture strategies, and creating streamlined processes for EHR integration to enhance healthcare technology adoption and patient care.</p>","PeriodicalId":74181,"journal":{"name":"mHealth","volume":"11 ","pages":"24"},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2025-06-17","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC12314718/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144777030","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Predictors of physical activity in daily life among women of reproductive age: a scoping review.","authors":"Gabrielle M Salvatore, Angelica R Rivera, Iris Bercovitz, Giada Benasi, Danielle Arigo","doi":"10.21037/mhealth-24-70","DOIUrl":"10.21037/mhealth-24-70","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>Physical activity (PA) is crucial for health promotion and chronic illness prevention. As chronic illness is increasing among women in young adulthood, there is an urgent need for effective strategies to encourage PA in this population. An improved understanding of PA behaviors and their determinants in daily life among women of reproductive age (i.e., ages 18-50 years) would help to inform intervention efforts. The purpose of this scoping review is to synthesize methods and evidence for studies of time-sensitive predictors of PA among women of reproductive age, and to identify key gaps to be addressed.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>Searches in Academic Search Complete, PubMed, MEDLINE, PsycInfo, and Web of Science identified observational or experimental studies that used a mobile tool (e.g., wearable PA sensor). Studies were eligible for inclusion if the primary outcome was objectively assessed PA, the predictor was assessed at least once daily, and if participants did not have a medical or psychiatric contraindication to performing PA.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>Of the initial 1,874 results, 7 articles that described 6 unique studies met inclusion criteria, with a total of 858 participants. Sample sizes ranged from 30 to 292, and mean age from 20.0 to 42.1 years. We summarized participant characteristics, study characteristics, and findings. Most studies were observational (71.4%). Common PA outcomes were step count and minutes of moderate-to-vigorous PA, assessed using commercially available or research-grade devices. PA predictors were assessed at 2 levels (i.e., person or day/moment), with considerable variability in the frequency of assessment.</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>This review highlights strengths and weaknesses of the current evidence base and identifies key opportunities for advancing our understanding of PA behaviors among women of reproductive age.</p>","PeriodicalId":74181,"journal":{"name":"mHealth","volume":"11 ","pages":"37"},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2025-06-15","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC12314687/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144777109","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Keep it simple: telemedicine to support pediatric care in Ethiopia through existing instant messaging applications.","authors":"Yossef Alnasser, Tigist Bacha, James Okereke, Sarah Erum","doi":"10.21037/mhealth-24-86","DOIUrl":"10.21037/mhealth-24-86","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>For telemedicine to be implemented and sustained in low- and middle-income countries (LMIC), it must be accessible, equitable, affordable, and compatible with current infrastructures. This study is to evaluate the views of pediatric healthcare practitioners in Ethiopia toward using an instant messaging app (Telegram) to conduct tele-consultations and asynchronous medical education.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>The study adopted a qualitative method via in-person interviews or message exchange to get greater insights and deeper meanings of pediatric doctors in Ethiopia about the use of Telegram chat groups for teleconsultations and medical education. Coding and Thematic analysis were applied to identify common themes and data analysis.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>The study attracted ten pediatric doctors for in-depth interviews and four text exchanges. All participants expressed positive attitudes toward telemedicine through simpler phone-based platforms. Telegram was the preferred application over WhatsApp and Zoom due to its compatibility with limited internet connections, multidimensional views of data, and an unlimited number of participants. Having a Telegram chat made it easy to get teleconsultation and improve pediatric knowledge. Pediatricians from non-academic institutions and rural areas viewed the chat group as a source of continuous medical education. A rural pediatrician stated, \"<i>In our hospital, we don't have morning sessions or case presentations, so it (the group) gives us a platform to read further, to learn further.</i>\" Residents found Telegram as a vital tool for their learning, with one resident stating, \"<i>I think Telegram is part of our residency.</i>\" Lack of consultation culture, fear of being judged, and hierarchy limited the number of teleconsultations and participation in educational discussions. Internet availability, digital divide, lack of physical exam, and privacy concerns were the main barriers to using Telegram for teleconsultations. Having international experts to answer consultations was viewed as a challenge and an advantage at the same time. It is a challenge when the international expert does not understand the culture or local resources. It is an advantage as the expert can introduce new updates and innovative interventions. A pediatrician said, \"<i>There are different groups of experts from here and from abroad as well…Yeah, that makes it an ideal thing.</i>\".</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>Telegram is already used by pediatric providers in Ethiopia for telemedicine and medical education. This affordable intervention can improve access and ease the burden of consultations for all providers while meeting current infrastructure. It has potential to be scaled up and regulated to improve pediatric telemedicine in Ethiopia and many LMIC.</p>","PeriodicalId":74181,"journal":{"name":"mHealth","volume":"11 ","pages":"27"},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2025-06-13","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC12314698/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144777104","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Challenges and enhancement of health: a dual impact of kangaroo care on parents and infants-systematic review.","authors":"Harika Yarlagadda, Jomara Sandbulte, Edward Downs","doi":"10.21037/mhealth-24-80","DOIUrl":"10.21037/mhealth-24-80","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>Reports show that in 2020 approximately 3.6 million live births were recorded in the United States, with an estimated 9-13% of these infants requiring neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) admission due to complex medical needs. In the NICUs, where newborns require specialized attention, an interplay unfolds between parents and their infants. Within these sterile walls, each touch, each whispered word, carries significance, creating strong connections during medical treatments.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>Our research seeks to examine the intricate relationship between parents and infants in the NICU through careful scientific investigation. Specifically, this paper serves as a foundational review of literature that highlights the importance of continuing research in this field.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>By examining existing studies, we aim to underscore the importance of attachment between mothers and infants, the necessity of evaluating their individual stress responses, and monitoring physiological changes. Also, we intend to better understand the mutual relationship between mother and child in the NICU setting.</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>Ultimately, by identifying specific interventions that can mitigate the emotional and physiological stresses experienced by both mothers and infants in the NICU, we aim to identify technological needs of the kangaroo care (KC) program and integrate these findings into routine care practices. We expect that this investigation insights will encourage more research on how to promote a more nurturing environment that supports the health and well-being of both mother and child during a NICU stay.</p>","PeriodicalId":74181,"journal":{"name":"mHealth","volume":"11 ","pages":"36"},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2025-06-09","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC12314710/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144777031","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"A systematic review and evaluation of mobile health apps designed for parents who are preparing or caring for medically complex infants.","authors":"Anne Chevalier McKechnie, Nellie Munn Swanson, Ratchada Jantraporn, Kristin M Elgersma, Taylor Iwaszko Wagner, Suhyun Park, Anna Trebilcock","doi":"10.21037/mhealth-24-84","DOIUrl":"10.21037/mhealth-24-84","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>Parents learning about their children with medical complexity often use numerous health-related resources, including mobile health applications (mHealth apps). mHealth apps could provide broad access to key information and support, lower healthcare costs, and improve care. The quality of mHealth apps for this population has been a concern, but is currently unknown. The objective of this systematic review was to identify and evaluate the quality of publicly available mHealth apps designed for parents who are preparing or caring for medically complex infants.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>A systematic search strategy was applied to identify mHealth apps in the Apple and Google Play app stores in November 2022 and replicated in August 2024. Apps with no cost, in English, designed for parents of infants with perinatal medical complexity requiring hospitalization were included. Apps for healthy pregnancies, children >1 year, non-parental caregivers or healthcare professionals, primarily for tracking/monitoring, or unrelated activities/products were excluded. Independent raters used the Mobile Application Rating Scale (MARS) subscales of Engagement, Functionality, Aesthetics, and Information to evaluate quality for each app. Mean ratings were calculated by subscale and for overall app quality.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>From 1,917 identified apps, 32 apps were downloaded and fully screened. The final sample of 15 unique apps were available on the Apple App Store, with six also available on the Google Play Store. Most apps focused on prematurity (n=6), followed by the neonatal intensive care experience (n=4), congenital heart disease (n=4), and hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy (n=1). MARS ratings of the overall sample (mean =3.61, median =3.58; range, 2.65-4.68) indicated 20% (3/15) were of good quality and 67% (10/15) were of acceptable quality. Apps showed strengths in Functionality and Information and performed worst in Engagement.</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>The poorest quality found in Engagement suggests that most of these apps do not effectively target users' interests or needs. Notably, many suffered from a lack of recent updates or became unavailable. This decline appears to parallel the increasing integration of digital health technologies within healthcare systems, which could prompt testing of mHealth apps on health outcomes. High-quality mHealth apps that are valued by parents and offer evidence-based information and support are needed to extend care.</p>","PeriodicalId":74181,"journal":{"name":"mHealth","volume":"11 ","pages":"38"},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2025-05-27","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC12314697/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144777020","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Be smart and use smartphones for telemedicine: narrative review.","authors":"Yossef Alnasser, Nicole Grande, Fakeha Masood, Cadina Powell, Robert H Gilman","doi":"10.21037/mhealth-24-71","DOIUrl":"10.21037/mhealth-24-71","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background and objective: </strong>With the evolution of technology, the delivery modes of healthcare have been completely transformed. Since the first use of telemedicine in the late 20th century, it has continued to evolve with advancement of technology. Today, telemedicine does not need sophisticated equipment and expensive platforms. Using a singular device to offer a wide range of services is both desired and necessary to provide higher-quality care at greater quantities. The inclusion of smartphone-telemedicine in many high-income countries proves a plausible framework to build upon for inclusion in low- and middle-income countries (LMIC). The primary goal of this review is to analyze existing literature on smartphone-based telemedicine and assess the scalability of this form of care to provide both accessible and equal care for all.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>This is a narrative review that analyzed English published literature in PubMed, Medline, Cochrane Reviews, and Google Scholar over the last 50 years.</p><p><strong>Key content and findings: </strong>Smartphone-based telemedicine can be divided mainly to mHealth and teleconsultation. Both applications are proven cost-effective at different extents and can augment health in different capacities. While mHealth is more suitable for health behavior change, smartphone teleconsultations can be employed in direct patient care. Smartphones' applicability to different settings and flexibility make them ideal for telemedicine. This form of telemedicine might be more suitable for low-resource settings and LMIC due to compatibility with current infrastructure, ease of use, lower cost and high availability. However, ease of use comes with risk of overutilization and providers' burnout. Privacy, digital divide and health literacy are other barriers of accessing smartphone-based telemedicine. Growing smartphone penetration and technology advancement carry future potentials for scaling up smartphone telemedicine in LMIC to advance equity and equality. Still, policies and regulations need to be implemented to protect privacy while using smartphones for telemedicine.</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>Smartphone-based telemedicine is an applicable form of telemedicine for low-resource settings and LMIC. Not all mHealth applications are suitable for LMIC, but investing in smartphone-based telemedicine for teleconsultation can save lives and lower the cost of care to reach everyone efficiently without a huge burden in a cost-effective manner for many LMIC.</p>","PeriodicalId":74181,"journal":{"name":"mHealth","volume":"11 ","pages":"39"},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2025-05-07","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC12314669/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144777021","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}