Salvatore Gabrielle M, Bercovitz Iris, Arigo Danielle
Department of Psychology, Rowan University, Glassboro, NJ, USA.
Department of Family Medicine, Rowan School of Osteopathic Medicine, Stratford, NJ, USA.
Mhealth. 2023 Oct 19;10:1. doi: 10.21037/mhealth-23-31. eCollection 2024.
The overturning of in June 2022 has many implications for American women of reproductive age, as well as for researchers focused on women's health in the United States (U.S.). Personal reproductive health data, such as information collected by menstrual cycle (MC) tracking applications (apps), can now be bought, sold, or accessed by law enforcement to enforce limits on abortion. American women have grown concerned about data privacy and have even deleted MC tracking apps following the overturning of . This concern is problematic as these apps may advance our understanding of women's MC experiences by capturing time-sensitive data. The present study was designed to provide updated insight into women's perceptions of these apps, including the response rate to a study of this nature and women's willingness to self-report demographic information in this context, following the Supreme Court decision.
A total of 206 women aged 18-60 years who were identified as pre- or perimenopausal completed an anonymous, cross-sectional survey between August and November 2022.
Most respondents had experience using a MC app at the time of reporting; 53.4% (n=110) were current users, and an additional 48 participants had used MC tracking apps in the past. Over one-third of participants (38.3%; n=75) indicated that they had reconsidered using such an app because of current events; 30.3% (n=59) preferred methods of MC tracking that did not involve app-based technology, and 34.2% (n=67) reported that they are not willing to participate in research that involves daily tracking of the MC.
Overall, the feasibility of menstruation-related research that includes mobile apps is fairly low, given women's current comfort with this technology compared to the Roe era, and there is a need to establish criteria and protections for use of mobile apps in women's health research.
2022年6月罗诉韦德案的推翻对美国育龄妇女以及专注于美国女性健康的研究人员产生了诸多影响。个人生殖健康数据，如通过月经周期（MC）追踪应用程序（应用）收集的信息，现在可能会被执法部门购买、出售或获取，以实施对堕胎的限制。美国女性越来越担心数据隐私问题，甚至在罗诉韦德案被推翻后删除了MC追踪应用。这种担忧存在问题，因为这些应用通过捕捉时间敏感数据，可能会增进我们对女性月经周期经历的理解。本研究旨在提供关于女性对这些应用看法的最新见解，包括在最高法院裁决后，此类性质研究的回应率以及女性在这种情况下自我报告人口统计学信息的意愿。
2022年8月至11月期间，共有206名年龄在18 - 60岁之间、被确定为绝经前或围绝经期的女性完成了一项匿名横断面调查。
大多数受访者在报告时曾有使用MC应用的经历；53.4%（n = 110）为当前用户，另有48名参与者过去曾使用过MC追踪应用。超过三分之一的参与者（38.3%；n = 75）表示，由于当前事件，他们重新考虑使用此类应用；30.3%（n = 59）更喜欢不涉及基于应用技术的MC追踪方法，34.2%（n = 67）报告称他们不愿意参与涉及每日追踪MC的研究。
总体而言，考虑到与罗诉韦德案时代相比，女性目前对这项技术的接受程度，包括移动应用的与月经相关研究的可行性相当低，因此有必要为在女性健康研究中使用移动应用制定标准和保护措施。
