Characteristics of Mobile Health Platforms for Depression and Anxiety: Content Analysis Through a Systematic Review of the Literature and Systematic Search of Two App Stores

Abstract

Background Mobile health (mHealth) platforms show promise in the management of mental health conditions such as anxiety and depression. This has resulted in an abundance of mHealth platforms available for research or commercial use. Objective The objective of this review is to characterize the current state of mHealth platforms designed for anxiety or depression that are available for research, commercial use, or both. Methods A systematic review was conducted using a two-pronged approach: searching relevant literature with prespecified search terms to identify platforms in published research and simultaneously searching 2 major app stores—Google Play Store and Apple App Store—to identify commercially available platforms. Key characteristics of the mHealth platforms were synthesized, such as platform name, targeted condition, targeted group, purpose, technology type, intervention type, commercial availability, and regulatory information. Results The literature and app store searches yielded 169 and 179 mHealth platforms, respectively. Most platforms developed for research purposes were designed for depression (116/169, 68.6%), whereas the app store search reported a higher number of platforms developed for anxiety (Android: 58/179, 32.4%; iOS: 27/179, 15.1%). The most common purpose of platforms in both searches was treatment (literature search: 122/169, 72.2%; app store search: 129/179, 72.1%). With regard to the types of intervention, cognitive behavioral therapy and referral to care or counseling emerged as the most popular options offered by the platforms identified in the literature and app store searches, respectively. Most platforms from both searches did not have a specific target age group. In addition, most platforms found in app stores lacked clinical and real-world evidence, and a small number of platforms found in the published research were available commercially. Conclusions A considerable number of mHealth platforms designed for anxiety or depression are available for research, commercial use, or both. The characteristics of these mHealth platforms greatly vary. Future efforts should focus on assessing the quality—utility, safety, and effectiveness—of the existing platforms and providing developers, from both commercial and research sectors, a reporting guideline for their platform description and a regulatory framework to facilitate the development, validation, and deployment of effective mHealth platforms.

Mental Health Mobile Apps in the French App Store: Assessment Study of Functionality and Quality

“…In addition, as the level of scientific evidence is difficult to assess, mental health professionals chose "N/A The application has not been tested" in most cases to answer item 19, which therefore could not be included in the statistical analysis. To our knowledge, of the 12 apps, only 1 (8%) app included in this study (Sanvello) was indexed in PubMed [45][46][47][48]. Myers et al [45] evaluated apps for depression self-management, Mehdi et al [46] evaluated apps for Tinnitus, and Lau et al [47] evaluated apps for mental health.…”

The Promise and Peril of Mental Health Apps

“…Importantly, our research of the literature was quite broad, including correlational studies in addition to experimental studies and clinical trials. A recent review of mobile apps for depression and anxiety identified 179 apps available to consumers, but only three apps-less than 2%-had evidence from both RCTs and real-world effectiveness (RWE) trials (Leong et al, 2022). Yet, more than 20% of the apps appeared under the category of medical apps on the app stores (Leong et al, 2022).…”

“…A recent review of mobile apps for depression and anxiety identified 179 apps available to consumers, but only three apps-less than 2%-had evidence from both RCTs and real-world effectiveness (RWE) trials (Leong et al, 2022). Yet, more than 20% of the apps appeared under the category of medical apps on the app stores (Leong et al, 2022). Notably, apps that are categorized as 'medical' may be perceived by consumers as being backed by scientific evidence even without making explicit claims of being evidence-based.…”

“…Most existing studies on mental health apps focus on establishing efficacy rather than effectiveness. Indeed, a recent search of the literature for anxiety and depression apps identified 70 RCTs but only three studies with real-world evidence-RWE (Leong et al, 2022).…”

A Digital Peer Support Platform to Translate Web-Based Peer Support for Emerging Adult Mental Well-being: Protocol for a Randomized Controlled Trial

“…The Acceset intervention addresses 3 gaps in the current research. First, our published work, undertaken to identify mobile health (mHealth) platforms across popular app stores and academic databases, found 302 anxiety and depression mHealth platforms that are currently available [ 36 ]. Of note, most mHealth platforms on the market are not designed for a specific age group and, even of those used academically, only 13% are designed specifically for emerging adults.…”