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BackgroundDifferences in physical and mental health impact across continents during the COVID-19 pandemic are unknown. ObjectiveThis study compared the levels of impact of COVID-19 on mental health among people from Spain and China and correlated mental health parameters with variables relating to symptoms similar to COVID-19, COVID-19 knowledge, and precautionary measures. MethodsWe collected information on demographic data, physical symptoms, contact history with persons with a confirmed COVID-19 diagnosis, COVID-19 knowledge, and precautionary measures. Participants completed the Impact of Event Scale-Revised (IES-R) and the Depression, Anxiety and Stress Scale–21 Items (DASS-21). To analyze the differences in the mental health parameters, the mean scores between Chinese and Spanish respondents were compared using the independent samples t test. The differences in categorical variables between the two samples were analyzed by the chi-square test. Linear regression was used to calculate the univariate associations between the independent variables and mental health parameters for both groups separately, with adjustments made for age, gender, and education. ResultsA total of 1528 participants (Spain: n=687; China: n=841) were recruited. The mean age of the Chinese respondents was 24.73 years (SD 7.60; range 18-65 years), and the mean age of the Spanish respondents was 43.06 years (SD 11.95; range 18-76 years). Spanish participants reported significantly more symptoms similar to COVID-19 infection (eg, fever, sore throat, and breathing difficulties), contact history with COVID-19, higher perceived risk of contracting COVID-19, frequent use of medical services, and less confidence in medical services compared with their Chinese counterparts (P

BackgroundArtificial intelligence (AI)–based technologies develop rapidly and have myriad applications in medicine and health care. However, there is a lack of comprehensive reporting on the productivity, workflow, topics, and research landscape of AI in this field. ObjectiveThis study aimed to evaluate the global development of scientific publications and constructed interdisciplinary research topics on the theory and practice of AI in medicine from 1977 to 2018. MethodsWe obtained bibliographic data and abstract contents of publications published between 1977 and 2018 from the Web of Science database. A total of 27,451 eligible articles were analyzed. Research topics were classified by latent Dirichlet allocation, and principal component analysis was used to identify the construct of the research landscape. ResultsThe applications of AI have mainly impacted clinical settings (enhanced prognosis and diagnosis, robot-assisted surgery, and rehabilitation), data science and precision medicine (collecting individual data for precision medicine), and policy making (raising ethical and legal issues, especially regarding privacy and confidentiality of data). However, AI applications have not been commonly used in resource-poor settings due to the limit in infrastructure and human resources. ConclusionsThe application of AI in medicine has grown rapidly and focuses on three leading platforms: clinical practices, clinical material, and policies. AI might be one of the methods to narrow down the inequality in health care and medicine between developing and developed countries. Technology transfer and support from developed countries are essential measures for the advancement of AI application in health care in developing countries.

BackgroundMobile phone use in Vietnam has become increasingly popular in recent years, with youth (people aged 15-24 years) being one of the groups with the heaviest use. Health-related apps on mobile phones (mobile health [mHealth] apps) appear to be a feasible approach for disease and health management, especially for self-management. However, there has been a scarcity of research on mobile phone usage for health care among youth and adolescents. ObjectiveThis study aims to identify the patterns of usage of mobile phone apps and the preferences for functionalities of mobile phone-based health-related apps among Vietnamese youth. MethodsAn online cross-sectional study was conducted in Vietnam in August to October 2015. Web-based respondent-driven sampling technique was adopted to recruit participants. The online questionnaire was developed and distributed using Google Forms. Chi square and Mann-Whitney tests were used to investigate the difference in attitude and preference for mobile phone apps between the two genders. ResultsAmong 356 youths (age from 15 to 25 years) sampled, low prevalence was found of using mHealth apps such as beauty counseling (6.5%, 23/356), nutrition counseling (7.9%, 28/356), disease prevention (9.8%, 35/356), and disease treatment (7.6%, 27/356). The majority of users found the app(s) they used to be useful (72.7%, 48/356) and reported satisfaction with these apps (61.9%, 39/356). No significant differences were found between the genders in their perception of the usefulness of apps and their satisfaction with mobile health apps. Most of the participants (68.2%, 238/356) preferred apps which are conceptualized and designed to run on a mobile phone compared to Web-based apps, and 50% (176/356) preferred visual materials. Approximately 53.9% (188/356) reported that it was integral for the mobile phone apps to have a sharing/social network functionality. Participants with a higher perceived stress score and EuroQol-5 Dimensions (EQ-5D) index were significantly less likely to use mHealth apps. ConclusionsThis study found a low proportion using mHealth-related mobile phone apps, but a high level of receptiveness and satisfaction among Vietnamese youth. Acceptance level and preferences toward mHealth apps as well as specifically preferred functionalities discovered in this study are essential not only in conceptualizing and developing appropriate mobile phone interventions targeting youth and adolescents, but also in the application of technically advanced solutions in disease prevention and health management.

BackgroundOver the past decade, there have been massive developments in both Web-based and mobile phone technologies. Mobile phones are well accepted by students, trainees, and doctors. A review of the current literature has identified the following specialties that have used mobile phones in education: pediatrics, ophthalmology, nephrology, plastic surgery, orthopedics, pharmacology, and urology. However, to date, there are no published papers examining the application of the latest mobile phone technologies for psychiatry education internationally. ObjectivesThe main objectives of this study are (1) to determine the feasibility and receptiveness of a locally-developed psychiatry mobile phone app and user perspectives (both quantitative and qualitative) towards it, and (2) to determine the receptiveness of a locally-developed app for psychiatry education internationally. MethodsA Web-based app that contained textbook contents, videos, and quizzes was developed using HTML5 technologies in 2012. Native apps were subsequently developed in 2013. Information about the apps was disseminated locally to Singaporean medical students, but the respective native apps were made available on the app stores. A user perspective survey was conducted locally to determine student’s perception of the app. ResultsFrom the inception of the app until the time of preparation of this manuscript, there have been a cumulative total of 28,500 unique visits of the responsive HTML5 Web-based mobile phone app. There have been a cumulative total of 2200 downloads of the Mastering Psychiatry app from the Apple app store and 7000 downloads of the same app from the Android app store. The initial user perspective survey conducted locally highlighted that approximately a total of 95.2% (177/186) of students felt that having a psychiatry mobile phone app was deemed to be useful. Further chi-squared analysis demonstrated that there was a significant difference between males and females in their perception of having textbook contents in the mobile phone app (χ24=12.9, P=.0012). ConclusionsTo the best of our knowledge, this is the first study to demonstrate the feasibility and global acceptance of a local, self-designed educational app for psychiatry education. Whilst the current research has managed to demonstrate the feasibility and acceptance of such an app, future studies would be warranted to look, in-depth, into whether there are cultural differences in terms of perceptions towards having such an app in psychiatry and what contents different cultures and cohorts of students might want within an app.

BackgroundThe usage of mobile phones and mobile phone apps in the recent decade has indeed become more prevalent. Previous research has highlighted a method of using just the Internet browser and a text editor to create an app, but this does not eliminate the challenges faced by clinicians. More recently, two methodologies of app development have been shared, but there has not been any disclosures pertaining to the costs involved. In addition, limitations such as the distribution and dissemination of the apps have not been addressed. ObjectiveThe aims of this research article are to: (1) highlight a low-cost methodology that clinicians without technical knowledge could use to develop educational apps; (2) clarify the respective costs involved in the process of development; (3) illustrate how limitations pertaining to dissemination could be addressed; and (4) to report initial utilization data of the apps and to share initial users’ self-rated perception of the apps. MethodsIn this study, we will present two techniques of how to create a mobile app using two of the well-established online mobile app building websites. The costs of development are specified and the methodology of dissemination of the apps will be shared. The application of the low-cost methodologies in the creation of the “Mastering Psychiatry” app for undergraduates and “Déjà vu” app for postgraduates will be discussed. A questionnaire survey has been administered to undergraduate students collating their perceptions towards the app. ResultsFor the Mastering Psychiatry app, a cumulative total of 722 users have used the mobile app since inception, based on our analytics. For the Déjà vu app, there has been a cumulative total of 154 downloads since inception. The utilization data demonstrated the receptiveness towards these apps, and this is reinforced by the positive perceptions undergraduate students (n=185) had towards the low-cost self-developed apps. ConclusionsThis is one of the few studies that have demonstrated the low-cost methodologies of app development; as well as student and trainee receptivity toward self-created Web-based mobile phone apps. The results obtained have demonstrated that these Web-based low-cost apps are applicable in the real life, and suggest that the methodologies shared in this research paper might be of benefit for other specialities and disciplines.

BackgroundThe use of mobile phones, and specifically smartphones, in the last decade has become more and more prevalent. The latest mobile phones are equipped with comprehensive features that can be used in health care, such as providing rapid access to up-to-date evidence-based information, provision of instant communications, and improvements in organization. The estimated number of health care apps for mobile phones is increasing tremendously, but previous research has highlighted the lack of critical appraisal of new apps. This lack of appraisal of apps has largely been due to the lack of clinicians with technical knowledge of how to create an evidence-based app. ObjectiveWe discuss two freely available methodologies for developing Web-based mobile phone apps: a website builder and an app builder. With these, users can program not just a Web-based app, but also integrate multimedia features within their app, without needing to know any programming language. MethodsWe present techniques for creating a mobile Web-based app using two well-established online mobile app websites. We illustrate how to integrate text-based content within the app, as well as integration of interactive videos and rich site summary (RSS) feed information. We will also briefly discuss how to integrate a simple questionnaire survey into the mobile-based app. A questionnaire survey was administered to students to collate their perceptions towards the app. ResultsThese two methodologies for developing apps have been used to convert an online electronic psychiatry textbook into two Web-based mobile phone apps for medical students rotating through psychiatry in Singapore. Since the inception of our mobile Web-based app, a total of 21,991 unique users have used the mobile app and online portal provided by WordPress, and another 717 users have accessed the app via a Web-based link. The user perspective survey results (n=185) showed that a high proportion of students valued the textbook and objective structured clinical examination videos featured in the app. A high proportion of students concurred that a self-designed mobile phone app would be helpful for psychiatry education. ConclusionsThese methodologies can enable busy clinicians to develop simple mobile Web-based apps for academic, educational, and research purposes, without any prior knowledge of programming. This will be beneficial for both clinicians and users at large, as there will then be more evidence-based mobile phone apps, or at least apps that have been appraised by a clinician.

BackgroundCrisis situations bring about many challenges to researchers, public institutions, and governments in collecting data and conducting research in affected individuals. Recent developments in Web-based and smartphone technologies have offered government and nongovernment organizations a new system to disseminate and acquire information. However, research into this area is still lacking. The current study focuses largely on how new social networking websites and, in particular, smartphone technologies could have helped in the acquisition of crucial research data from the general population during the recent 2013 Southeast Asian Haze. This crisis lasted only for 1 week, and is unlike other crisis where there are large-scale consequential after-effects. ObjectiveTo determine whether respondents will make use of Internet, social media, and smartphone technologies to provide feedback regarding their physical and psychological wellbeing during a crisis, and if so, will these new mechanisms be as effective as conventional, technological, Internet-based website technologies. MethodsA Web-based database and a smartphone application were developed. Participants were recruited by snowball sampling. The participants were recruited either via a self-sponsored Facebook post featuring a direct link to the questionnaire on physical and psychological wellbeing and also a smartphone Web-based application; or via dissemination of the questionnaire link by emails, directed to the same group of participants. Information pertaining to physical and psychological wellbeing was collated. ResultsA total of 298 respondents took part in the survey. Most of them were between the ages of 20 to 29 years and had a university education. More individuals preferred the option of accessing and providing feedback to a survey on physical and psychological wellbeing via direct access to a Web-based questionnaire. Statistical analysis showed that demographic variables like age, gender, and educational levels did not influence the mechanism of access. In addition, the participants reported a mean number of 4.03 physical symptoms (SD 2.6). The total Impact of Event Scale–Revised (IES-R) score was 18.47 (SD 11.69), which indicated that the study population did experience psychological stress but not post-traumatic stress disorder. The perceived dangerous Pollutant Standards Index (PSI) level and the number of physical symptoms were associated with higher IES-R Score (P