eHealth tools to assess the neurological function for research, in absence of the neurologist – a systematic review, part I (software)

Abstract

Background Neurological disorders remain a worldwide concern due to their increasing prevalence and mortality, combined with the lack of available treatment, in most cases. Exploring protective and risk factors associated with the development of neurological disorders will allow for improving prevention strategies. However, ascertaining neurological outcomes in population-based studies can be both complex and costly. The application of eHealth tools in research may contribute to lowering the costs and increase accessibility. The aim of this systematic review is to map existing eHealth tools assessing neurological signs and/or symptoms for epidemiological research. Methods Four search engines (PubMed, Web of Science, Scopus & EBSCOHost) were used to retrieve articles on the development, validation, or implementation of eHealth tools to assess neurological signs and/or symptoms. The clinical and technical properties of the software tools were summarised. Due to high numbers, only software tools are presented here. Findings A total of 42 tools were retrieved. These captured signs and/or symptoms belonging to four neurological domains: cognitive function, motor function, cranial nerves, and gait and coordination. An additional fifth category of composite tools was added. Most of the tools were available in English and were developed for smartphone device, with the remaining tools being available as web-based platforms. Less than half of the captured tools were fully validated, and only approximately half were still active at the time of data collection. Interpretation The identified tools often presented limitations either due to language barriers or lack of proper validation. Maintenance and durability of most tools were low. The present mapping exercise offers a detailed guide for epidemiologists to identify the most appropriate eHealth tool for their research. Funding The current study was funded by a PhD position at the University of Groningen. No additional funding was acquired.

A Delphi consensus to identify the key screening tests/questions for a digital neurological examination for epidemiological research

“…This Delphi consensus is part of a wider study aimed at developing an eHealth tool to assess neurological impairment at the population level, in the absence of a neurologist, to be used for epidemiological research. As a first step, a systematic review mapped existing eHealth software tools assessing one or more neurological functions [ 25 ]. This Delphi exercise represents a step further of the theoretical work needed for the development of the final eHealth tool—the NeuroEpiTool.…”

“…In the past decade, several eHealth tools have been devised to collect neurological data (e.g. screening and monitoring) for research (for a comprehensive review of software tools, refer to [ 25 ]). However, these tools are limited to data collection of either one function or one disorder.…”