A study in Health Affairs evaluated patient-targeted mobile health apps. The research was led by Karandeep Singh, MD, an assistant professor of learning health sciences and medicine at the University of Michigan Medical School in Ann Arbor.
Dr. Singh and his research team identified 137 of the most highly rated mobile health apps aimed at patients with chronic conditions, such as those with asthma, arthritis, diabetes, high blood pressure, depression, lung disease, liver disease, kidney disease or heart failure.
Here are three of their main findings:
1. Limited responsiveness. Although 121 of the 137 apps allowed patients to enter information about their daily health, only 28 of the apps responded with a direct course of action if a patient entered a dangerous value (examples of dangerous measures might include a high blood pressure or suicidal mood).
2. Low security. The majority of the apps allowed users to share their health information with others — for example, via email or text message — however, only two-thirds of the apps had a written private policy concerning how they protect user information. Only a minority of the apps utilized established secure sharing methods for health information.
3. Unreliable evaluation. At present, medical professional societies, insurers and policy makers have not established a way to recommend reliable apps, leaving patients to rely on consumer ratings, according to the researchers. However, when considering clinical utility, physicians often rate apps significantly differently than consumers.