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Interventions used varied strategies in differing composition, and further work is needed to find out the effectiveness of individual interventions.

Objective This review evaluates the effectiveness of smartphone applications in improving academic performance and clinical practice among healthcare professionals and students. Methods This study followed the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines. Articles were retrieved from PubMed, Scopus, and Cochrane library through a comprehensive search strategy. Studies that included medical, dental, nursing, allied healthcare professional, undergraduates, postgraduates, and interns from the same disciplines who used mobile applications for their academic learning and/or daily clinical practice were considered. Results 52 studies with a total of 4057 learner participants were included in this review. 33 studies (15 RCTs, 1 cluster RCT, 7 quasi-experimental studies, 9 interventional cohort studies and 1 cross-sectional study) reported that mobile applications were an effective tool that contributed to a significant improvement in the knowledge level of the participants. The pooled effect of 15 studies with 962 participants showed that the knowledge score improved significantly in the group using mobile applications when compared to the group who did not use mobile applications (SMD = 0.94, 95% CI = 0.57 to1.31, P<0.00001). 19 studies (11 RCTs, 3 quasi-experimental studies and 5 interventional cohort studies) reported that mobile applications were effective in significantly improving skills among the participants. Conclusion Mobile applications are effective tools in enhancing knowledge and skills. They can be considered as effective adjunct tools in medical education by considering their low expense, high versatility, reduced dependency on regional or site boundaries, online and offline, simulation, and flexible learning features of mobile apps.

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Background: Head and Neck Cancer (HNC) patients are at increased risk of psychosocial distress compared with patients with other forms of cancer. Various symptoms of the disease and side effects of treatment are attributing factors for distress. This systematic review aimed to identify the prevalence of psychosocial distress among HNC patients receiving radiotherapy. Methods: The following search engines from 2000-2021 were searched: PubMed, CINAHL, Cochrane, Web of Science, ProQuest, Scopus, and Embase. Citation checking and extensive reference checking were also conducted. Cross-sectional, longitudinal, cohort, exploratory and prospective, repeated measure studies published in English were included. Newcastle Ottawa Scale assessed the quality, and the data were extracted on a validated data extraction form. Results: Out of 782 articles, eleven records met the eligibility criteria, including 776 HNC patients receiving radiotherapy. Data were synthesized and summarized descriptively as measurements were not homogenous. Prevalence estimates of depression or depressive symptoms were calculated. Outcomes were measured with various measuring tools and reported in frequency, percentage, mean, and standard deviation in various studies. All studies reported depression ranging from 9.8% to 83.8%, and pooled estimated prevalence of depression among HNC patients receiving radiotherapy is 63% (95% CI 42-83) with significant heterogeneity (I 2 = 97.66%; p<0.001). An increase in the trend is observed along with treatment progression. Another three studies reported anxiety along with depression. Physical symptoms, body image, low social support, fatigue specific radiotherapy regimens were the predictive factors of depression. Conclusion: HNC patients are psychosocially distressed during radiotherapy, and the distress is steadily increased during the therapy. The predictive factors could serve as potential areas of intervention and supportive therapy during radiotherapy.

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Aim: The aim of this study is to evaluate the effectiveness of music on anxiety and pain among patients following cardiac surgery.Background: Cardiac surgery affects patients physically, psychologically and socially.Anxiety and pain are the usual problems among patients following cardiac surgery. Design:The study design is a systematic review and meta-analysis. Data sources: The Medical Literature Analysis and Retrieval System Online (MEDLINE), Cumulative Index to Nursing and Allied Health Literature (CINAHL), Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (CENTRAL), Excerpta Medica database (EMBASE) and Web of Science databases were searched for randomized controlled trials from January 2000 to December 2017.Review methods: The Cochrane collaboration guidelines were followed and reported using the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) statement. The Grading of Recommendations, Assessment, Development, and Evaluations (GRADE) approach was used to summarize the quality of evidence.Results: Fourteen studies were included in systematic review and 13 in metaanalysis. The meta-analysis revealed that there was a significant reduction in anxiety and pain among patients who received musical intervention compared with those who did not. Conclusion:Music has positive benefits on anxiety and pain. However, well-designed and high-quality trials are needed to generate higher quality evidence.