Arabkermani Zahra, Barzegari Saeed, Rouhani Atefeh, Nahavandi Nilofar, Gibreel Omer, Arpaci Ibrahim
Department of Paramedicine, Amol School of Paramedical Sciences, Mazandaran University of Medical Sciences, Sari, Iran.
Student Research Committee, Mazandaran University of Medical Sciences, Farah Abad Street, 1454, Sari, 48175, Iran, 09369118477.
J Med Internet Res. 2025 Jun 17;27:e71118. doi: 10.2196/71118.
Digital health interventions, especially mobile apps, have become instrumental in helping women at risk of polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS), increasing their understanding of the condition, improving self-care, and fostering empowerment. However, their rapid proliferation has brought about significant challenges regarding quality assessment and evidence-based determination. Therefore, establishing reliable quality assessment methods is essential to assist patients with PCOS in identifying effective and trustworthy mobile health tools.
This study was designed to assess the content and quality of mobile apps developed for patients with PCOS using the Mobile App Rating Scale (MARS) to provide insights into their strengths, limitations, and areas needing improvement.
In this descriptive-analytical study conducted in June 2024, a comprehensive search was performed to identify English and Persian mobile apps related to PCOS through the Café Bazaar and Google Play Store platforms, using both direct search methods and auxiliary tools such as AppAgg and AppBrain. Two trained reviewers (AR and NN) independently reviewed the apps using the MARS tool. The interrater reliability was measured using the intraclass correlation coefficient test. The quality of each app was scored across 4 dimensions: engagement, functionality, aesthetics, and information quality.
Of the initial 199 apps identified, 15 met the inclusion criteria after screening and updates. The interrater agreement rate was 85%, which is considered acceptable. The apps' overall quality was sufficient, as assessed using the MARS, with a mean score of 3.6 (SD 0.52) of 5. Functionality and aesthetics emerged as the highest-scoring dimensions, highlighting user-friendliness and visual appeal (n=10). In contrast, engagement following information quality received the lowest average score, indicating limited interactivity and gaps in providing evidence-based information. The Ask PCOS app achieved the highest overall score, performing exceptionally well in subjective quality (4.75) and app-specific quality (4.33), reflecting its strong capacity to positively impact users' knowledge, attitudes, and behaviors related to PCOS. Uvi Health and Ask PCOS scored highest in engagement (4.2), while PCOS & PCOD Diet & Remedies led in functionality (5), and Uvi Health topped aesthetics (5).
The findings revealed that even though many available PCOS-related apps demonstrate strengths in technical performance and design, critical limitations persist regarding user engagement and the credibility of the information provided. The predominance of commercially affiliated apps without academic or clinical oversight was identified as a key contributing factor to these shortcomings. These results underscore the need for future app development to incorporate more user-engaging features, reliable evidence-based content, and personalization strategies to enhance user engagement and support effective PCOS self-management. Addressing these limitations and leveraging the capabilities of existing mobile devices are essential steps toward improving the overall quality and impact of mobile health interventions for individuals with PCOS.
数字健康干预措施，尤其是移动应用程序，在帮助患有多囊卵巢综合征（PCOS）风险的女性方面发挥了重要作用，提高了她们对该病症的认识，改善了自我护理，并增强了自主能力。然而，它们的迅速普及带来了质量评估和基于证据的判定方面的重大挑战。因此，建立可靠的质量评估方法对于帮助PCOS患者识别有效且值得信赖的移动健康工具至关重要。
本研究旨在使用移动应用程序评分量表（MARS）评估为PCOS患者开发的移动应用程序的内容和质量，以深入了解其优势、局限性和需要改进的方面。
在2024年6月进行的这项描述性分析研究中，通过Café Bazaar和谷歌应用商店平台，使用直接搜索方法以及AppAgg和AppBrain等辅助工具，进行了全面搜索，以识别与PCOS相关的英文和波斯文移动应用程序。两名经过培训的评审员（AR和NN）使用MARS工具独立评审这些应用程序。使用组内相关系数检验来测量评分者间的信度。每个应用程序的质量在四个维度上进行评分：参与度、功能、美观性和信息质量。
在最初识别的199个应用程序中，经过筛选和更新后，有15个符合纳入标准。评分者间的一致率为85%，这被认为是可以接受的。使用MARS评估，这些应用程序的总体质量足够，平均得分为3.6（标准差0.52）（满分5分）。功能和美观性是得分最高的维度，突出了用户友好性和视觉吸引力（n = 10）。相比之下，信息质量之后的参与度得分最低，表明交互性有限且在提供基于证据的信息方面存在差距。Ask PCOS应用程序获得了最高的总体得分，在主观质量（4.75）和特定应用质量（4.33）方面表现出色，反映了其对用户与PCOS相关的知识、态度和行为产生积极影响的强大能力。Uvi Health和Ask PCOS在参与度方面得分最高（4.2），而PCOS & PCOD饮食与疗法在功能方面领先（5分），Uvi Health在美观性方面排名第一（5分）。
研究结果表明，尽管许多现有的与PCOS相关的应用程序在技术性能和设计方面表现出优势，但在用户参与度和所提供信息的可信度方面仍然存在严重局限性。确定没有学术或临床监督的商业附属应用程序占主导地位是这些缺点的一个关键因素。这些结果强调了未来应用程序开发需要纳入更多吸引用户的功能、可靠的基于证据的内容和个性化策略，以提高用户参与度并支持有效的PCOS自我管理。解决这些局限性并利用现有移动设备的功能是提高针对PCOS个体的移动健康干预措施的整体质量和影响的重要步骤。
