Mobile health app for monitoring allergic rhinitis and asthma in real life in Lithuanian MASK‐air users

Abstract

Background MASK‐air® is an app whose aim is to reduce the global burden of allergic rhinitis (AR) and asthma. A transfer of innovative practices was performed to disseminate and implement MASK‐air® in European regions. The aim of the study was to examine the implementation of the MASK‐air® app in Lithuanian adults in order to investigate (i) the rate of acceptance in this population, (ii) the duration of app use and (iii) the evaluation of the app after its use. Methods In a longitudinal study, Lithuanian adults with AR and/or asthma were recruited by allergists. They were informed about how to use MASK‐air® and were followed closely. They were reviewed after one to 3 months to evaluate satisfaction and were asked to continue using the app. Results Among the 149 patients recruited (37.2 ± 10.4 years), 52.4% had rhinitis alone, 42.9% had rhinitis, asthma and/or conjunctivitis multimorbidity, and 2.7% isolated asthma. According to the MASK‐air® baseline questionnaire, 88.3% of patients considered that their symptoms were troublesome. Data were available for 102 (68.4%) patients. The duration of app usage in patients ranged from 1 to 680 days (median, 25–75 percentile: 54, 23.2–151 days). Forty‐two (41.1% of patients who were reviewed) patients agreed to share their opinion on MASK‐air®. Most users of the app were satisfied, from 46.5% thinking their allergy was treated more successfully to 90.4% recommending this app to other allergy sufferers. Discussion When recommended by physicians, MASK‐air® was used for a longer period of time.

Dissemination Strategies for mHealth Apps: Systematic Review

“…As shown in Table 2, mHealth app promotion was conducted through various channels, including paper posters, face-to-face communications, email, and social media. The most reported channels were face-to-face [23,25,28,30,31] and social media [17,27,28,30,31], both of which appeared in 50% (5/10) of the studies. Messages were intended to inform people about the existence of the app, what it does and the benefits of using it, where to find the downloading link, downloading instructions, and information on how to use the app.…”

“…Messages on social media and email included a shortened URL to download the app. Face-to-face interactions [23,25,28,30,31] provided the opportunity for training support, including demonstrating app features, installing and using the app, and solving technical issues.…”

The “allergic nose as a pollen detector” concept: e‐Diaries to predict pollen trends

“…15,20 A blended approach to e-Diaries, with the doctor explaining and prescribing its use, is associated with much higher adherence to compilation. 22,23…”

“…The observational studies were characterized by large population size (more than 9000 participants) and big datasets (112,054 registered visual analog scale [VAS] data), balanced by a poor mean adherence (<10%) to daily recording 15,20 . A blended approach to e‐Diaries, with the doctor explaining and prescribing its use, is associated with much higher adherence to compilation 22,23 …”

Beyond ARIA: Will e‐diaries replace retrospective questionnaires in measuring the severity of allergic rhinitis in clinical research and daily practice?

“…33 When applying these compilation of an e-diary for a long period, so that the former may be preferred to achieve a severity classification only. On the other hand, the information given in the e-diary is more flexible, detailed, and complete than the ARIA questionnaire and, beyond disease severity, can be used to measure the AR overall burden, 43 time trends, 4 association with allergen exposure, 26 short-and long-term response to preventive or therapeutic intervention, 23,[44][45][46] and adherence to medication. 47 Both evaluations are therefore complementary to the clinical history.…”