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Commercially available mobile phone headache diary apps: a systematic review
Amos S Hundert1, Anna Huguet, Patrick J McGrath
1IWK Health Center, Halifax, NS, Canada. amos.hundert@iwk.nshealth.ca.
JMIR Mhealth and Uhealth
|August 21, 2014
Summary
Mobile headache diary apps are increasingly common, but a review found none meet all ideal criteria. The highest-scoring apps lack sufficient scientific backing, indicating a need for evidence-based development.
Area of Science:
- Neurology
- Digital Health
- Medical Informatics
Background:
- Headache diaries are crucial for self-monitoring headache conditions.
- Mobile electronic diary applications are rapidly gaining popularity for headache tracking.
Purpose of the Study:
- To identify and critically evaluate all available mobile headache diary applications on iOS and Android platforms.
- To assess the quality and suitability of these apps for clinical use and patient management.
Main Methods:
- A set of 7 predefined criteria for an ideal headache diary app was established.
- Thirty-eight mobile headache diary applications were identified and scored against these criteria.
Main Results:
- No applications met all 7 ideal criteria; the top three scored 5 out of 7.
- Only 18% of apps incorporated scientific or clinical headache expertise.
- None of the evaluated apps reported on psychometric properties.
Conclusions:
- A significant gap exists between the demand for mobile headache diary apps and their scientific rigor.
- There is a concerning lack of scientific expertise and evidence base in current mobile headache diary applications.
