Patient focused oral hygiene apps: an assessment of quality (using MARS) and knowledge content.

Patient focused oral hygiene apps: an assessment of quality (using MARS) and knowledge content.

Sharif, Mohammad Owaise;Alkadhimi, Aslam;
British Dental Journal 2019 Vol. 227 pp. 383-386
272
sharif2019patientbritish

Abstract

Introduction Smartphone apps can be a valuable means for education and prevention to improve the health of children, adolescents and adults. A recent review of apps has revealed that there are over 1,000 patient-focused oral hygiene apps available on the Apple App Store and Google Play (Android) store.Objective The purpose of this research is to objectively assess the quality of 20 commercially available, patient-focused oral hygiene apps using the Mobile App Rating Scale (MARS). Furthermore, the accuracy of oral hygiene-related information contained within the apps will be assessed.Methods Apps meeting inclusion criteria were evaluated for: 1) quality using the MARS tool; and 2) information accuracy using an eight-item, evidence-based checklist relating to important aspects in the prevention of caries and periodontal disease.Results The mean app quality score was 3.4/5 (2.3-4.9). On average, of the four MARS subscales assessed, 'functionality' had the highest mean score (4) and 'information' had the lowest (2.9). With regard to the accuracy of information contained within these apps, only two were found to contain accurate information for all eight items of the checklist. The majority (60%) of the apps (n = 13) did not contain information relating to at least 50% or more of the items present.Conclusions Currently available apps appear to be functional, however, there is a need to improve engagement, aesthetics and most importantly information content of apps.

Citation

ID: 53254
Ref Key: sharif2019patientbritish
Use this key to autocite in SciMatic or Thesis Manager

References

Blockchain Verification

Account:
NFT Contract Address:
0x95644003c57E6F55A65596E3D9Eac6813e3566dA
Article ID:
53254
Unique Identifier:
10.1038/s41415-019-0665-0
Network:
Scimatic Chain (ID: 481)
Loading...
Blockchain Readiness Checklist
Authors
Abstract
Journal Name
Year
Title
5/5
Creates 1,000,000 NFT tokens for this article
Token Features:
  • ERC-1155 Standard NFT
  • 1 Million Supply per Article
  • Transferable via MetaMask
  • Permanent Blockchain Record
Blockchain QR Code
Scan with Saymatik Web3.0 Wallet

Saymatik Web3.0 Wallet