Dataset Information

Mobile Phone Apps for University Students With Hazardous Alcohol Use: Study Protocol for Two Consecutive Randomized Controlled Trials.

ABSTRACT: BACKGROUND:About 50% of university students overconsume alcohol, and drinking habits in later adulthood are to some extent established during higher educational studies. Several studies have demonstrated that Internet-based interventions have positive effects on drinking habits among university students. Our recent study evaluated two mobile phone apps targeting drinking choices at party occasions via personalized feedback on estimated blood alcohol concentration (eBAC) for students with hazardous drinking. No changes in drinking parameters were found over a seven-week period apart from an increase in number of drinking occasions among men for one of the apps tested. Up to 30% of the study participants drank at potentially harmful levels: higher than the national recommended number of standard drinks per week (a maximum of 9 for women and 14 for men) in Sweden. OBJECTIVE:(1) To evaluate improved versions of the two mobile phone apps tested in our prior trial, in a new, 3-armed randomized controlled trial among university students with at least hazardous drinking habits according to the Alcohol Use Disorders Identifications Test (AUDIT; Study 1). (2) After 6 weeks, to target study participants showing alcohol consumption higher than the national recommended levels for standard drinks per week by offering them participation in a second, 2-armed randomized trial evaluating an additional mobile phone app with skill enhancement tasks (Study 2). (3) To follow participants at 6, 12 and 18 weeks after recruitment to Study 1 and at 6 and 12 weeks after recruitment to Study 2. METHODS:Two randomized controlled trials are conducted. Study 1: Students are recruited at four Swedish universities, via direct e-mail and advertisements on Facebook and student union web sites. Those who provide informed consent, have a mobile phone, and show at least hazardous alcohol consumption according to the AUDIT (?6 for women; ?8 points for men) are randomized into three groups. Group 1 has access to the Swedish government alcohol monopoly's app, Promillekoll, offering real-time estimated eBAC calculation; Group 2 has access to a Web-based app, PartyPlanner, developed by the research group, offering real-time eBAC calculation with planning and follow-up functions; and Group 3 participants are controls. Follow-up is conducted at 6, 12 and 18 weeks. Study 2. Participants who at the first 6-week follow-up show drinking levels higher than 9 (W) or 14 (M) standard drinks (12 g alcohol) per week, are offered participation in Study 2. Those who consent are randomized to either access to a skills training app, TeleCoach or to a wait-list control group. RESULTS:Latent Markov models for Study 1 and mixed models analyses for Study 2 will be performed. Study 2 data will be analyzed for publication during the spring of 2016; Study 1 data will be analyzed for publication during the fall of 2016. CONCLUSIONS:If mobile phone interventions for reducing hazardous alcohol use are found to be effective, the prospects for positively influencing substance use-related health among university students can considerably improve. TRIAL REGISTRATION:ClinicalTrials.gov http://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT02064998 (Archived by WebCite at http://www.webcitation.org/6dy0AlVRP).

SUBMITTER: Berman AH

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4704963 | biostudies-literature | 2015 Dec

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Mobile Phone Apps for University Students With Hazardous Alcohol Use: Study Protocol for Two Consecutive Randomized Controlled Trials.

Berman Anne H AH Gajecki Mikael M Fredriksson Morgan M Sinadinovic Kristina K Andersson Claes C

JMIR research protocols 20151222 4

<h4>Background</h4>About 50% of university students overconsume alcohol, and drinking habits in later adulthood are to some extent established during higher educational studies. Several studies have demonstrated that Internet-based interventions have positive effects on drinking habits among university students. Our recent study evaluated two mobile phone apps targeting drinking choices at party occasions via personalized feedback on estimated blood alcohol concentration (eBAC) for students with ...[more]

PMID: 26693967

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Project description:Brief interventions via the internet have been shown to reduce university students' alcohol intake. This study tested two smartphone applications (apps) targeting drinking choices on party occasions, with the goal of reducing problematic alcohol intake among Swedish university students.Students were recruited via e-mails sent to student union members at two universities. Those who gave informed consent, had a smartphone, and showed risky alcohol consumption according to the Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test (AUDIT) were randomized into three groups. Group 1 had access to the Swedish government alcohol monopoly's app, Promillekoll, offering real-time estimated blood alcohol concentration (eBAC) calculation; Group 2 had access to a web-based app, PartyPlanner, developed by the research group, offering real-time eBAC calculation with planning and follow-up functions; and Group 3 participants were controls. Follow-up was conducted at 7 weeks.Among 28574 students offered participation, 4823 agreed to join; 415 were excluded due to incomplete data, and 1932 fulfilled eligibility criteria for randomization. Attrition was 22.7-39.3 percent, higher among heavier drinkers and highest in Group 2. Self-reported app use was higher in Group 1 (74%) compared to Group 2 (41%). Per-protocol analyses revealed only one significant time-by-group interaction, where Group 1 participants increased the frequency of their drinking occasions compared to controls (p?=?0.001). Secondary analyses by gender showed a significant difference among men in Group 1 for frequency of drinking occasions per week (p?=?0.001), but not among women. Among all participants, 29 percent showed high-risk drinking, over the recommended weekly drinking levels of 9 (women) and 14 (men) standard glasses.Smartphone apps can make brief interventions available to large numbers of university students. The apps studied using eBAC calculation did not, however, seem to affect alcohol consumption among university students and one app may have led to a negative effect among men. Future research should: 1) explore ways to increase user retention, 2) include apps facilitating technical manipulation for evaluation of added components, 3) explore the effects of adapting app content to possible gender differences, and 4) offer additional interventions to high-risk users.clinicaltrials.gov: NCT01958398.

Project description:BackgroundEvaluating the quality of mobile health apps for weight loss and weight management is important to understand whether these can be used for obesity prevention and treatment. Recent reviews call for more research on multidimensional aspects of app quality, especially involving end users, as there are already many expert reviews on this domain. However, no quantitative study has investigated how laypersons see popular apps for weight management and perceive different dimensions of app quality.ObjectiveThis study aimed to explore how laypersons evaluate the quality of 6 free weight management apps (My Diet Coach, SparkPeople, Lark, MyFitnessPal, MyPlate, and My Diet Diary), which achieved the highest quality ratings in a related and recent expert review.MethodsA user-centered study was conducted with 36 employees of a Lebanese university. Participants enrolled in the study on a rolling basis between October 2016 and March 2017. Participants were randomly assigned an app to use for 2 weeks. App quality was evaluated at the end of the trial period using the Mobile App Rating Scale user version (uMARS). uMARS assesses the dimensions of engagement, functionality, aesthetics, information, and subjective quality on 5-point scales. Internal consistency and interrater agreement were examined. The associations between uMARS scores and users' demographic characteristics were also explored using nonparametric tests. Analyses were completed in November 2017.ResultsOverall, the 6 apps were of moderately good quality (median uMARS score 3.6, interquartile range [IQR] 0.3). The highest total uMARS scores were achieved by Lark (mean 4.0 [SD 0.5]) and MyPlate (mean 3.8 [SD 0.4]), which also achieved the highest subjective quality scores (Lark: mean 3.3 [SD 1.4]; MyPlate: mean 3.3 [SD 0.8]). Functionality was the domain with the highest rating (median 3.9, IQR 0.3), followed by aesthetics (median 3.7, IQR 0.5), information (median 3.7, IQR 0.1), and engagement (median 3.3, IQR 0.2). Subjective quality was judged low (median 2.5, IQR 0.9). Overall, subjective quality was strongly and positively related (P<.001) with total uMARS score (ρ=.75), engagement (ρ=.68), information, and aesthetics (ρ=.60) but not functionality (ρ=.40; P=.02). Higher engagement scores were reported among healthy (P=.003) and obese individuals (P=.03), who also showed higher total uMARS (P=.04) and subjective quality (P=.05) scores.ConclusionsAlthough the apps were considered highly functional, they were relatively weak in engagement and subjective quality scores, indicating a low propensity of using the apps in the future. As engagement was the subdomain most strongly associated with subjective quality, app developers and researchers should focus on creating engaging apps, holding constant the functionality, aesthetics, and information quality. The tested apps (in particular Lark and MyPlate) were perceived as more engaging and of higher quality among healthy, obese individuals, making them a promising mode of delivery for self-directed interventions promoting weight control among the sampled population or in similar and comparable settings.

Project description:BackgroundMany of the adverse outcomes experienced by mothers and babies are directly related to the health of the woman prior to pregnancy. This preconception period is a unique window of opportunity when women are often more motivated to optimise health and change their lifestyle in preparation for pregnancy. Several risk factors in the preconception period can contribute to adverse perinatal outcomes. These risk factors can be divided into three broad areas: biomedical, social and environmental. Mobile phone applications as a behaviour change intervention have the potential to address these risks through supporting the provision of information, healthier lifestyles and informed decision-making. The aim of this systematic review is to assess the effectiveness of mobile phone applications in promoting behaviour change and improving long-term outcomes for mother and babies, in women of reproductive age.MethodsThis review will include trials that assess any mobile phone application (app) that assist women of reproductive age to optimise health behaviours. Randomised controlled trials, quasi-randomised controlled trials and cluster-randomised trials will be included. The search strategy will use both MeSH and keyword combinations to search databases including the WHO Global Health Library, CINHAL, The Cochrane Library, Embase and MEDLINE for relevant studies. Retrieved citations will be screened independently by two authors to assess eligibility. Studies will be selected only if the intervention was commenced prior to pregnancy. Comparisons will be made including mobile phone applications versus text messaging-based communications or paper-based, face-to-face or telephone conversations and standard care or no specific intervention. The Cochrane Handbook for Systematic Reviews of Interventions will be utilised to assess the quality of included randomised studies. Primary and secondary outcomes will be compared and analysed. Results of the review will be reported using the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analysis Protocols (PRISMA-P) guidelines.DiscussionThis systematic review is the first to assess the effects of preconception mobile phone app behaviour change and educational interventions in improving future pregnancy and maternal and child outcomes, in women of reproductive age.Systematic review registrationPROSPERO 2017: CRD42017065903 .

Dataset Information

Mobile Phone Apps for University Students With Hazardous Alcohol Use: Study Protocol for Two Consecutive Randomized Controlled Trials.

Publications

Mobile Phone Apps for University Students With Hazardous Alcohol Use: Study Protocol for Two Consecutive Randomized Controlled Trials.

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