@Article{info:doi/10.2196/mhealth.4874,
author="Con, Danny
and De Cruz, Peter",
title="Mobile Phone Apps for Inflammatory Bowel Disease Self-Management: A Systematic Assessment of Content and Tools",
journal="JMIR mHealth uHealth",
year="2016",
month="Feb",
day="01",
volume="4",
number="1",
pages="e13",
keywords="IBD; apps; eHealth; smartphone; mhealth",
abstract="Background: The rising incidence of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) over the past decade has resulted in increased health care utilization and longer IBD outpatient waiting lists. Self-management is recognized as an important aspect of chronic disease management but its application to IBD has been limited. The age of IBD onset in a majority of patients is in their 20s to 30s. Mobile phone apps are a technology familiar to young adults and represent an opportunity to explore self-management as a new model of health care delivery for IBD. Objective: The aim of this study was to explore the content and tools of existing IBD apps to identify functionalities that may facilitate patient self-management. Methods: We systematically assessed apps targeted at IBD patients via searches of Google (Android devices) and Apple (iOS devices) app stores with pre-defined inclusion and exclusion criteria. Apps were assessed for specific functionalities; presence of professional medical involvement; consistency with international IBD guidelines based on ``complete,'' ``partial,'' or ``absent'' coverage of consensus statements derived from the European Crohn's and Colitis Organisation, American College of Gastroenterology, and the Gastroenterology Society of Australia; comprehensiveness of data that could be entered; and average pricing. Results: Of the 238 apps screened, 26 apps were assessed, including 10 available on Android platforms, 8 on iOS platforms, and 8 on both. Over half (14/26, 54{\%}) of the apps had diary functionalities; over a third (10/26, 39{\%}) provided health information about IBD. None of the apps offered decision support to facilitate the self-initiation of medical therapy. Five of 26 (19{\%}) had professional medical involvement in their design. Apps demonstrated ``complete'' coverage of only 38{\%} of the international consensus statements explored. The average price of the apps was AUD{\$}1.37. Conclusions: Apps may provide a useful adjunct to the management of IBD patients. However, a majority of current apps suffer from a lack of professional medical involvement and limited coverage of international consensus guidelines. Future studies and app design for IBD should include professional medical involvement, evidence-based guidelines, and functionalities with decision support that are specifically tailored to patient self-management. ",
issn="2291-5222",
doi="10.2196/mhealth.4874",
url="http://mhealth.jmir.org/2016/1/e13/",
url="https://doi.org/10.2196/mhealth.4874",
url="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/26831935"
}