Lisa Glynn, Margaret Mc Cann, Catherine Mc Cabe
Abstract
Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) significantly impacts on both the quality and quantity of life for patients due to frequent exacerbations requiring hospital admissions resulting in increased morbidity and mortality. A self-management programme purpose is to increase one’s knowledge, confidence, and skills to self-manage their chronic illness such as COPD. Objective: The objective of this review will therefore answer the following research question: What is the current literature pertaining to the use of a smartphone app in supporting a comprehensive self-management programme among COPD patients? A preliminary search was conducted in, Medline, Embase and CINAHL databases to ascertain index terms and keywords.
Introduction
Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD), is an incurable chronic lung disease largely caused from extensive exposure to cigarette smoking and other noxious gases. The development of COPD is further influenced by host factors such as genetics, childhood abnormal lung development, air pollution and aging [1]. It results in persistent respiratory symptoms, such as a chronic productive cough, breathlessness, wheeze, and airflow limitation [1]. After ischaemic heart disease and stroke, COPD is the third leading cause of all deaths worldwide (6%) [2].
Methods Search Strategy
A preliminary search was conducted in, Medline, Embase and CINAHL databases to ascertain index terms and keywords. Following this a rigorous search will be carried out using the index terms and keywords on the following databases: Medline, Embase, CINAHL, Web of Science and ASSIA. These databases were chosen based on their relevance to the review questions. The search strategy was developed for each database, and with the aid of an experienced librarian a review of electronic search strategies was carried out (S2 Appendix). Hand searching of the literature occurred from the references of included articles.
Results Study Inclusion
During the initial phase, 1,697 studies were included, 52 were duplicates and 1,645 studies were screened. Following this, 1,389 studies did not meet the review inclusion criteria and were discarded. In the full text review 256 studies were reviewed and 15 studies met the inclusion criteria (Fig 1). The main reasons for exclusion were as follows, wrong intervention (tablet, iPad or personal computer), third party engagement (telemonitoring and follow up clinic visits), wrong study design and incorrect population.
Discussion
COPD is an incurable chronic lung disease that results in frequent exacerbations resulting in hospitalisations thereby increasing mortality and morbidity among this cohort [1]. In recent times, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, studies have been conducted exploring smartphones apps supporting a comprehensive self-management programme for people with COPD. Interestingly, the COVID-19 pandemic has altered the way the older population view technology resulting in the increased use of smartphone apps in the delivery of healthcare [13,14]. With the increased use of smartphone apps within healthcare there is particular focus placed on data privacy.
Citation: Glynn L, Mc Cann M, Mc Cabe C (2024) Smartphone applications supporting self-management programme for adults with Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease: A Scoping Review. PLOS Digit Health 3(6): e0000532. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pdig.0000532
Editor: Hamish S. Fraser, Brown University, UNITED STATES
Received: June 13, 2024
Copyright: © 2024 Glynn et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.
Data Availability: As this is a scoping review, ethical approval was not required. This scoping review provides an overview of the current literature and has summarized the findings on the use of a smartphone application supporting a self-management programme for Chronic Obstruction Pulmonary Disease patients. Also, this review has adhered to a standard, rigorous methodological and reporting framework such as the JBI (2020) PRISMA-ScR. Citation and linking of research data and their associated articles are included in the reference list.
Funding: The authors received no specific funding for this work.
Competing interests: The authors have declared that no competing interests exist.
