scholarly journals Using a commercially available app for self-management of hypertension: Acceptance and usability study in Saudi Arabia (Preprint)

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tourkiah Alessa ◽  
Mark S Hawley ◽  
Nouf Alsulamy ◽  
Luc de Witte
Keyword(s):  
Real World ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
The Self ◽  
Security And Privacy ◽  
Self Management ◽  
Usability Study ◽  
Gulf Region ◽  
Usability Test ◽  
App Development ◽  
Study Participants

BACKGROUND The use of smartphone apps to assist in the self-management of hypertension is becoming increasingly common, but very few commercially available apps have the potential to be with adequate security and privacy safeguards and effective. In a previous study, we identified 5 apps that are potentially effective and safe, and, based on the preferences of doctors and patients, one (Cora Health) was selected as most suitable for use in a Saudi context. However, there is currently no evidence on its usability and acceptance among potential users. Indeed, there has been very little research into usability and acceptance of hypertension apps in general, and even less that considers the Gulf Region. OBJECTIVE To evaluate the acceptance and usability of the selected app in the Saudi context. METHODS This research used a mixed-methods approach with two studies: 1) a usability test involving patients in a controlled setting performing predefined tasks; and 2) a real-world usability study where patients used the app for four weeks. In the usability test, participants were asked to think aloud while performing the tasks, and an observer recorded how many tasks they completed. At the end of the real-world pilot study, participants were interviewed and the mHealth App Usability Questionnaire (MAUQ) was completed. Descriptive statistics were used to analyze quantitative data and thematic analysis was used to analyze qualitative data RESULTS A total of 10 patients completed study 1. The study found that app usability was moderate and participants needed some familiarization time before they could use the app proficiently. Some usability issues were revealed, related to app accessibility, navigation, etc. and a few tasks remained uncompleted by most people. Twenty patients completed study 2, with a mean age of 51.6. Study 2 found that the app was generally acceptable and easy to use, with some similar usability issues identified. Participants stressed the importance of practice and training to use it more easily and proficiently. Participants had a good engagement level with 48% retention at the end of study 2, with most participants’ engagement being classed as meaningful. The most recorded data was BP, followed by stress and medication, and the most accessed feature was viewing graphs of data trends. CONCLUSIONS This study showed that a commercially available app can be usable and acceptable in the self-management of hypertension, but also found a considerable number of possibilities for improvement, which need to be considered in future app development. The results show there is potential for a commercially-available app to be used in large-scale studies of hypertension self-management if suggestions for improvements are addressed. CLINICALTRIAL

scholarly journals An Efficient and Packing-Resilient Two-Phase Android Cloned Application Detection Approach

2017 ◽  
Vol 2017 ◽  
pp. 1-12 ◽  
Author(s):  
Fang Lyu ◽  
Yaping Lin ◽  
Junfeng Yang
Keyword(s):  
Real World ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Detection System ◽  
Malicious Code ◽  
Security And Privacy ◽  
Two Phase ◽  
Android Malware ◽  
Detection Approach ◽  
Application Industry ◽  
Selection Phase

The huge benefit of mobile application industry has attracted a large number of developers and attendant attackers. Application repackaging provides help for the distribution of most Android malware. It is a serious threat to the entire Android ecosystem, as it not only compromises the security and privacy of the app users but also plunders app developers’ income. Although massive approaches have been proposed to address this issue, plagiarists try to fight back through packing their malicious code with the help of commercial packers. Previous works either do not consider the packing issue or rely on time-consuming computations, which are not scalable for large-scale real-world scenario. In this paper, we propose FUIDroid, a novel two-phase app clones detection system that can detect the packed cloned app. FUIDroid includes a function-based fast selection phase to quickly select suspicious apps by analyzing apps’ description and a further UI-based accurate detection phase to refine the detection result. We evaluate our system on two sets of apps. The result from experiment on 320 packed samples demonstrates that FUIDroid is resilient to packed apps. The evaluation on more than 150,000 real-world apps shows the efficiency of FUIDroid in large-scale scenario.

scholarly journals Get Rich Syndrome: Examining the Fight against Cybercrime in Enugu State, Nigeria

2021 ◽  
Vol 10 ◽  
pp. 1390-1396
Author(s):  
Ngozi Idemili-Aronu ◽  
Ifeyinwa Angela Ajah ◽  
Oguejiofo C.P. Ezeanya ◽  
Joy Chikaodili Omaliko ◽  
Oluchukwu Sunday Nwonovo
Keyword(s):  
Real World ◽  
Grade Level ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Sampling Method ◽  
Legal Framework ◽  
Business Owners ◽  
Harsh Environments ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Enugu State ◽  
Study Participants

Despite the large scale provisions within the Nigerian legal framework that address the issue of cyber frauds, there is an alarming increase in cyber-offences in Nigeria. This necessitated the present study that employed semi-structured interviews to draw data from civil servants from grade level twelve and above and business owners aged 40 years and over [N = 34]. The study participants were recruited through a purposive sampling method and data were analyzed thematically. Results show that individuals and different organizations are often hit through direct hacking, malware planting, and many other more sophisticated means by cyber-criminals. The study calls for the Nigerian leaders to reach a consensus on the meaning of cyber fraud, the effects and roles each community must play to reach an agreed goal. Parents need to also balance euphoria in their children with training and preparations for the harsh environments in the real world.

scholarly journals Mobile Apps to Support the Self-Management of Hypertension: Systematic Review of Effectiveness, Usability, and User Satisfaction (Preprint)

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tourkiah Alessa ◽  
Sarah Abdi ◽  
Mark S Hawley ◽  
Luc de Witte
Keyword(s):  
Systematic Review ◽  
Blood Pressure ◽  
User Satisfaction ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Public Health Problem ◽  
Risk Of Bias ◽  
The Self ◽  
Self Management ◽  
Cochrane Library ◽  
Cochrane Central Register

BACKGROUND Hypertension is a chronic disease that is considered to be a public health problem and requires efforts by patients to manage themselves. The global growth in the use of mobile phones and tablets has been accompanied by the increased use of health apps. Many of these apps support the self-management of hypertension and, therefore, they have the potential benefits of lowering blood pressure. Despite this, there is currently a lack of evidence for their effectiveness, usability, and patient satisfaction with their use. OBJECTIVE A systematic review was conducted to assess the effectiveness of apps in lowering blood pressure, as well as their usability and patients’ satisfaction with their use. METHODS We conducted searches in the following databases: MEDLINE (OVID), EMBASE (OVID), PsycINFO (OVID), CINAHL, the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (CENTRAL, The Cochrane Library), IEEE Xplore ASSIAN, Google Scholar and the main Arabic databases Al Manhal, AskZad, and Mandumah. We looked for studies that used apps in the self-management of hypertension from 2008-2016. We also checked the reference lists of the review papers and all the primary studies for additional references. RESULTS A total of 21 studies with a total of 3112 participants were included in the review. Of the 14 studies that assessed the effectiveness of the apps in lowering blood pressure, 10 (71.4%) studies (6 RCTs and 4 nonrandomized studies) reported that using the apps led to significant decreases in blood pressure and seemed to be effective in the self-management of hypertension. Of these 10, only 2 (20%) RCTs and 3 (30%) nonrandomized studies had a low–moderate risk of bias. The results of this review are inconclusive regarding which combinations of functionalities would be most effective in lowering blood pressure because of variation in the studies’ quality, but the data suggest that apps incorporating more comprehensive functionalities are likely to be more effective. In all the studies that assessed the usability of the apps and users’ acceptance of them, all the apps seemed to be accepted and easy to use. CONCLUSIONS Most of the studies reported that apps might be effective in lowering blood pressure and are accepted by users. However, these findings should be interpreted with caution, as most of the studies had a high risk of bias. More well-designed, large-scale studies are required to evaluate the real effect of using apps in lowering blood pressure and to identify the most effective functionality combinations for lowering blood pressure.

scholarly journals An mHealth App for Users with Dexterity Impairments: Accessibility Study (Preprint)

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Daihua Yu ◽  
Bambang Parmanto ◽  
Brad Dicianno
Keyword(s):  
Mobile Health ◽  
Chronic Conditions ◽  
Lower Number ◽  
Ease Of Use ◽  
Self Management ◽  
Usability Study ◽  
Interface Quality ◽  
App Development ◽  
Lower Error Rate ◽  
Insight Into

BACKGROUND A mobile health (mHealth) system called iMHere (interactive mobile health and rehabilitation) was developed to support individuals with chronic conditions and disability in their self-management regimens. The initial design of iMHere, however, lacked sufficient accessibility for users with a myriad of dexterity impairments. The accessibility of self-management apps is essential in ensuring usability. OBJECTIVE This study aims to increase the usability of the iMHere system for users with dexterity impairments by increasing the app’s accessibility. METHODS We targeted the accessibility redesign by focusing on the physical presentation and the navigability of the iMHere apps. Six participants presenting with dexterity impairments were included in the usability study of the original and redesigned apps. RESULTS We observed a lower number of touches needed to complete tasks (P=.09) and time to complete individual tasks (P=.06) with the redesigned app than with the original app; a significantly lower time for users to complete all tasks (P=.006); and a significantly lower error rate (P=.01) with the redesigned app than with the original app. In fact, no errors occurred with use of the redesigned app. Participant-reported overall average usability of the redesigned app (P=.007) and usability of individual modules (P<.001) were significantly higher than that of the original app due mostly to better ease of use and learnability, interface quality, and reliability. CONCLUSIONS Improved usability was achieved using a redesigned app. This study offers insight into the importance of personalization in enhancing the accessibility and also identifies strategies for improving usability in app development.

1588-P: Therapy Trends in Initial 6 Months of the First Large-Scale Longitudinal Nationwide Study on Management and Real-World Outcomes of Diabetes in India (LANDMARC)

Diabetes ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 69 (Supplement 1) ◽  
pp. 1588-P ◽  
Author(s):  
ROMIK GHOSH ◽  
ASHOK K. DAS ◽  
AMBRISH MITHAL ◽  
SHASHANK JOSHI ◽  
K.M. PRASANNA KUMAR ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Real World ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Nationwide Study

2258-PUB: Impact of Cardiovascular (CV) Risk Factors during the Initial 6 Months of the First Large-Scale Longitudinal Nationwide Study on Management and Real-World Outcomes of Diabetes in India (LANDMARC)

Diabetes ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 69 (Supplement 1) ◽  
pp. 2258-PUB
Author(s):  
ROMIK GHOSH ◽  
ASHOK K. DAS ◽  
SHASHANK JOSHI ◽  
AMBRISH MITHAL ◽  
K.M. PRASANNA KUMAR ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Risk Factors ◽  
Real World ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Nationwide Study
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