Encouraging Behavior Changes and Preventing Cardiovascular Diseases Using the Prevent Connect Mobile Health App: Conception and Evaluation of App Quality.

Dahbia Agher,Marie-Christine Jaulent,Sylvie Despres,Jean-Pierre Albinet,Rosy Tsopra,Karima Sedki

doi:10.2196/25384

Abstract

BackgroundCardiovascular diseases are a major cause of death worldwide. Mobile health apps could help in preventing cardiovascular diseases by improving modifiable risk factors such as eating habits, physical activity levels, and alcohol or tobacco consumption.ObjectiveThe aim of this study was to design a mobile health app, Prevent Connect, and to assess its quality for (1) assessing patient behavior for 4 cardiovascular risk factors (unhealthy eating, sedentary lifestyle, alcohol, and tobacco consumption) and (2) suggesting personalized recommendations and mobile health interventions for risky behaviors.MethodsThe knowledge base of the app is based on French national recommendations for healthy eating, physical activity, and limiting alcohol and tobacco consumption. It contains a list of patient behaviors and related personalized recommendations and digital health interventions. The interface was designed according to usability principles. Its quality was assessed by a panel of 52 users in a 5-step process: completion of the demographic form, visualization of a short presentation of the app, testing of the app, completion of the user version of the Mobile App Rating Scale (uMARS), and an open group discussion.ResultsThis app assesses patient behaviors through specific questionnaires about 4 risk factors (unhealthy eating, sedentary lifestyle, alcohol, and tobacco consumption) and suggests personalized recommendations and digital health interventions for improving behavior. The app was deemed to be of good quality, with a mean uMARS quality score of 4 on a 5-point Likert scale. The functionality and information content of the app were particularly appreciated, with a mean uMARS score above 4. Almost all the study participants appreciated the navigation system and found the app easy to use. More than three-quarters of the study participants found the app content relevant, concise, and comprehensive. The aesthetics and the engagement of the app were also appreciated (uMARS score, 3.7). Overall, 80% (42/52) of the study participants declared that the app helped them to become aware of the importance of addressing health behavior, and 65% (34/52) said that the app helped motivate them to change lifestyle habits.ConclusionsThe app assessed the risky behaviors of the patients and delivered personalized recommendations and digital health interventions for multiple risk factors. The quality of the app was considered to be good, but the impact of the app on behavior changes is yet to be demonstrated and will be assessed in further studies.

Highlights

Cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) are a major cause of death worldwide [1] for which several causal risk factors have been identified [2]
The app assessed the risky behaviors of the patients and delivered personalized recommendations and digital health interventions for multiple risk factors
Mobile health interventions [8,9,10] can be useful for improving lifestyle behaviors relating to CVDs. mHealth technology is defined as mobile devices such as mobile phones, patient monitoring devices, personal digital assistants, or other wireless devices intended to be worn, carried, or accessed by patients or health care providers to monitor health status or improve health outcomes [3,4]

Summary

Introduction

Cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) are a major cause of death worldwide [1] for which several causal risk factors have been identified [2]. One of the keys to prevent CVD is reducing the impact of modifiable risk factors such as unhealthy eating, physical inactivity, alcohol consumption, and smoking [3,4,5,6,7] This can be achieved by providing advice and encouraging changes in patient behavior, as concerns these risk factors. MHealth interventions may take various forms, including SMS text messages, interactive voice responses, surveys, focus groups, smartphone health apps, and solutions combining several aspects of connected health. Many of these interventions have been shown to have a significant impact on the management and improvement of modifiable risk factors in CVD prevention [5,6,7,11,12,13,14]. Mobile health apps could help in preventing cardiovascular diseases by improving modifiable risk factors such as eating habits, physical activity levels, and alcohol or tobacco consumption

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Results

Conclusion