Whats ‘App-ening’

Abstract

eHealth solutions for digestive diseases have a supportive function and a positive impact on patients. However, there is a need to increase patient education and further develop the possibility for care team-patient communication within eHealth solutions.

Individualized home-monitoring of disease activity in adult patients with inflammatory bowel disease can be recommended in clinical practice: A randomized-clinical trial

“…eHealth offers patients a quick and easily understandable tool for disease monitoring, with faster recognition of disease relapse, greater engagement with their treatment and easier access to health care. All of these benefits support patients in optimizing their individualized treatment[10,11]. Close monitoring of disease activity is vital for optimizing individualized treatments and to improve potentially the long-term disease course.…”

Gut Symptoms during FODMAP Restriction and Symptom Response to Food Challenges during FODMAP Reintroduction: A Real-World Evaluation in 21,462 Participants Using a Mobile Application

“…However, symptoms vary widely, with diarrhoea and/or constipation being present or absent in the different subtypes, and symptoms of bloating and flatulence are often present [ 1 ]. Symptom tracking is often lacking in apps for gut disease [ 27 ]; however, this function provided an opportunity for participants to monitor their progress during the different stages of the low FODMAP diet.…”

“…Although data on the use of barcode scanning was not available, this app demonstrated that at least 85% of participants utilised the free text and food category functions. Thus, apps that incorporate a vast branded product database have the potential to increase knowledge and potentially confidence regarding which foods can be consumed during the low FODMAP diet [ 27 , 42 ], which is often of great concern to patients who do not have access to a dietitian [ 25 ].…”

“…The use of mobile applications (apps) in healthcare has dramatically increased over the last decade [ 27 ]. Digestive symptoms, disorders of gut-brain interaction, and IBS may be particularly amenable to app usage as those affected are often young and embracers of technology and because users may have an increased ability to better understand dietary management strategies, such as the low FODMAP diet, and to self-manage their symptoms [ 27 ].…”

“…Many apps on the low FODMAP diet provide detailed information regarding which foods to include and exclude during FODMAP restriction but few give comprehensive information on the reintroduction and personalisation stages of the diet [ 27 ]. Data sourced from apps can provide insight into the implementation of the low FODMAP diet in real-world settings and, in particular, on the FODMAP reintroduction and FODMAP personalisation stages that are so often missing from the research literature.…”