10.6084/M9.FIGSHARE.C.6271355.V1
Jürgen Barth
Jürgen
Barth
0000-0001-7096-7178
University Hospital of Zurich
Jiani Wang
Jiani
Wang
0000-0002-0618-8337
Charité - University Medicine Berlin
Jesus Lopez-Alcalde
Jesus
Lopez-Alcalde
0000-0002-1598-8790
University Hospital of Zurich
Instituto Ramón y Cajal de Investigación Sanitaria
Francisco de Vitoria University
Christoph Kramm
Christoph
Kramm
University Hospital of Zurich
Daniel Pach
Daniel
Pach
0000-0002-2459-6596
University Hospital of Zurich
Charité - University Medicine Berlin
Noelia Álvarez-Díaz
Noelia
Álvarez-Díaz
0000-0002-5904-3609
Hospital Universitario Ramón y Cajal
Eulàlia Grifol-Clar
Eulàlia
Grifol-Clar
0000-0003-3944-0372
Hospital Universitario Fundación Alcorcón
Claudia M. Witt
Claudia M.
Witt
0000-0002-5440-7805
University of Maryland, Baltimore
University Hospital of Zurich
Charité - University Medicine Berlin
Smartphone-RCCT: an online repository of randomized controlled clinical trials of smartphone applications for chronic conditions
Abstract Background Chronic health conditions have a big impact on disability, morbidity, and mortality worldwide. Smartphone health applications (apps) can improve the health of patients with chronic conditions and enhance the quality and efficiency of healthcare. The number of randomized controlled trials (RCTs) of smartphone health apps is increasing, but a collection of the available evidence into a single database is still missing. The purpose of this study is to describe Smartphone-RCCT, which is an in-progress database of RCTs of smartphone apps for chronic conditions. Methods For a study to be included in the database, the following criteria had to be met: (a) RCT published in a peer-reviewed journal; (b) population: adult study participants with one or several chronic conditions that represent the main health problem addressed by the study intervention; (c) intervention: smartphone health app used by the patient; (d) comparator: any control condition; (e) outcomes: any patient-reported health outcome (studies exclusively measuring the patients’ knowledge about the chronic conditions or their satisfaction with the smartphone app were excluded); (f) sample size: at least 15 participants per study arm. We searched in electronic databases and other resources to identify relevant studies. Two reviewers selected the studies and extracted data independently. Annual updates are planned. Results The proposed database is called Smartphone-RCCT, an open-access repository collecting bibliographic references and important characteristics of RCTs of smartphone apps for chronic conditions. The database is available for free in Open Science Framework (OSF): https://osf.io/nxerf/ . To date, it includes 70 trials. Their references can be exported to standard reference management software and the extracted data is available in a Microsoft Excel file. Conclusions Smartphone-RCCT is the first systematic open-access database collecting peer-reviewed publications of RCTs of smartphone apps for patients with chronic conditions. The database accelerates the delivery of evidence-based information in a dynamic research field. It represents an essential resource for different stakeholders, such as professionals working in evidence synthesis, meta-epidemiological studies, or planning an RCT.
Information Systems
figshare
2022
2022-10-28
2022-10-28
Collection
10.1186/s13063-022-06849-x
10.6084/m9.figshare.c.6271355
CC BY 4.0