Previously submitted to: Journal of Medical Internet Research (no longer under consideration since Apr 16, 2025)
Date Submitted: Sep 30, 2024
Warning: This is an author submission that is not peer-reviewed or edited. Preprints - unless they show as "accepted" - should not be relied on to guide clinical practice or health-related behavior and should not be reported in news media as established information.
Enhancing Engagement and Usability in Orthopaedic Rehabilitation Mobile Applications: A Systematic Review of Influencing Factors
ABSTRACT
Background:
In 2020, 84% of the UK population owned a smartphone. Health apps have demonstrated substantial success in orthopaedic specialties effectively addressing challenges including pre-operative preparation and post-operative rehabilitation. Despite this, a gap exists in user engagement, necessitating an exploration of the factors influencing patient engagement of orthopaedic rehabilitation apps.
Objective:
This paper aims to systematically review the factors that contribute to or hinder the engagement of individuals with rehabilitation apps, specifically focusing on hip and knee surgeries.
Methods:
A comprehensive PubMed identified 164 papers. All papers were screened, and data was extracted from the included literature. Quality appraisal was conducted, employing the Mixed Methods Appraisal Tool (MMAT). Analysis included identifying common themes.
Results:
From the initial 164 papers screened, 11 papers were included in the final analysis. Three major themes were found: Patient empowerment, digital health engagement, and communication and data security & privacy.
Conclusions:
Digital health engagement was highlighted as a pivotal facilitator for heightened user engagement, underscored by appealing app design with gamification, and personalisation of the app to the patients’ specific needs. Patient empowerment, encompassing education and effective communication with healthcare professionals, also played a crucial role. However, the significance of data security and privacy acted as a substantial deterrent, emphasising the need for robust safeguards to enhance user trust and adoption of healthcare apps. Clinical Trial: CRD42023494556
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Copyright
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