An increasing number of smartphone-users are monitoring their personal health and well-being, including their menstrual symptoms, using mobile apps. For individuals suffering from menstrual pain (also known as dysmenorrhea), mobile health (mHealth) apps can help reduce treatment barriers by providing users with easy to access symptom self-management tools. However, the quality of in-app self-management tools and interventions for menstrual pain are unclear. This research is the first to explore the overall quality of pain and symptom management content within menstrual tracking apps.
Goal
The goal of this study was to take a closer look at the overall quality of menstrual apps available on the market, and assess in-app pain and symptom management content. More specifically, the research team wanted to evaluate in-app features and characteristics, find out how many apps included pain and symptom tracking features as well as pain-related intervention content, and explore whether the content provided was based on evidence-based knowledge.
Methodology
Researchers conducted a search of the Apple App Store to identify available apps targeting facets of the menstrual experience. Duplicated apps were removed, and the remaining apps were screened to see if they met eligibility inclusion criteria. 119 apps were retained and researchers rated each on their quality (e.g., engagement, functionality, design aesthetics, and information) and user impact on pain and symptom management using the Mobile App Rating Scale (MARS; Stoyanov et al., 2015).
Main findings
Researchers found that 64% of the menstruation-related apps evaluated included pain and menstrual symptoms tracking features. Yet, most tracking features available in these apps (75%) were quite simple (e.g., simply requiring users to check a ‘present/absent’ checkbox) and did not allow for a more detailed assessment and monitoring of pain symptoms across menstrual cycles. Although the overall app quality was found to be acceptable, the potential impact of apps on users’ menstrual pain-related knowledge, awareness, and behaviours was rated as low. Only 10% of the evaluated apps included interventions for menstrual pain self-management. Very few apps (less than 15%) were developed in collaboration with healthcare professionals, scientists, or end-users.
Take home message
These findings suggest that despite the large selection of menstrual apps available, apps containing evidence-based interventions related to menstrual pain and symptom management were scarce, and few apps used validated and reliable pain tracking features.