Introduction: The explosion of mobile phone users along with the importance of user’s role in managing their health provides a unique opportunity for m-Health applications in the management of chronic illnesses such as Multiple sclerosis (MS). Aim: To identify available MS applications and to characterize the content of MS self-management applications. Methods: Two popular online application stores (iTunes, Google play) were searched for multiple sclerosis -related apps using the following keywords: multiple sclerosis, disseminated multiple sclerosis, disseminated sclerosis, and MS. Apps were considered eligible if they had been customized only on multiple sclerosis. First, data was extracted from the description page for any eligible application. To achieve the study goal, the secondary analysis was performed only for self-management applications. Results: Search of two popular markets identified 1042 applications (747 applications from Google play, and 295 applications from iTunes). Of these, 104 unique applications met the inclusion criteria. Almost a quarter of eligible applications (26%) had been designed for multiple sclerosis self-management. Other purposes of the identified applications were diagnosing & treating (7.7%), doing tests (7.7%), connecting & communication for MS patients (4.8%), raising awareness of multiple sclerosis (15.4%), accessing to journals & news (6.7%), conferences & meetings (17.3%), supporting & donating to MS community (14.4%). Conclusion: It appears the mobile applications provide a multidimensional tool for patient with Multiple Sclerosis to improve their condition self-management. These applications can contribute to empowerment of the patients, and help their adherence to the therapeutic and management regimen of their conditions. Moreover, they can be utilized to collect information on the MS progress pattern in personal level for each individual patient. This information may provide health care professionals with evidence to help their patients toward enhancing self-management of their disease.

Background: Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a common cause of neurologic disability in young adults. Individuals with MS deal with the day-to-day effects of the disease on their lives. Self-management can help with these challenges. This study aimed to explore MS self-management needs according to experiences of persons with MS and was conducted as part of a research project to develop an MS self-management mobile application. Methods: We used a qualitative method to elicit self-management needs among 12 individuals with MS and conducted semistructured interviews with them. The participants were chosen based on snowball sampling. The interviews were recorded and transcribed verbatim. Finally, qualitative data were analyzed using a content analysis method (inductive way) to identify the underlying themes and subthemes. Results: The analysis resulted in the emergence of seven themes: the source of information, basic needs, understanding MS, physical exercises in MS, useful nutrition in MS, MS monitoring, and communication. Within these seven themes we identified 23 subthemes. Conclusions: The themes that emerged in this study show what needs are essential to help persons with MS improve their self-management capacity. These findings can help in the development of self-management mobile applications for supporting individuals in managing MS.

Background Multiple sclerosis (MS) is one of the most common neurological disorders worldwide, and self-management is considered an essential dimension in its control. This study aimed to develop an evidence-based mobile application for MS self-management and evaluate it. Methods This study was undertaken in three phases: content preparation, design, and evaluation. In the content preparation phase, the researchers extracted MS self-management needs based on related guidelines and guides, existing apps on the self-management of MS, and the field experts' views and confirmation. The design phase was conducted in five steps: defining app functionalities, depicting the wireframe, preparing the media, coding the app, and testing the app’s performance. The app was developed using the Android Studio environment and Java programming language for the Android operating system. The performance of the developed app was tested separately in several turns, and existing defects were corrected in each turn. Finally, after using the app for three weeks, the app was evaluated for its short-term impact on MS management and user-friendliness using a researcher-constructed questionnaire from participants’ (N = 20) perspectives. Results The IDoThis app is an offline app for people with MS that includes five main modules: three modules for training or informing users about different aspects of MS, one module for monitoring the user's MS condition, and a reporting module. In the initial evaluation of the app, 75% (n = 15) of participants mentioned that using this app improved MS self-management status at intermediate and higher levels, but 25% (n = 5) of the participants mentioned that the effect of using the app on the self-management tasks was low or was very low. The majority of users rated the user-friendliness of the app as high. The users found the sections “exercises in MS” and “monitoring of MS status” beneficial to their self-management. Still, the fatigue and sleep management sections are needed to meet users' expectations. Conclusion Using IDoThis app as a self-management tool for individuals with MS appears feasible, that can meet the need for a free and accessible self-management tool for individuals with MS. Future directions should consider the users’ fatigue and sleep management expectations.

Background: The explosion of mobile phone users along with the importance of user's role in managing