Mobile Health Technology for Pediatric Symptom Monitoring: A Feasibility Study.
Jacqueline Vaughn, Siddharth Gollarahalli, Ryan J Shaw and 5 others
PMID 31972852WHAT IT FOUND
Children undergoing PBMT used wearable and app symptom monitoring; seven stayed at least 40 days, wearable used 51% of days, app 56%, satisfaction 2.52 on 0-4.
Feasibility was mixed, not proven better.
Key findings
01Of 12 children and parents approached, 10 enrolled with an 83% enrollment rate, and 7 stayed in the study for at least 40 days.
02The seven children who used devices wore the wearable for more than 3 hours per day on 51% of study days and charted in the app at least once per day on 56% of study days, while missing data increased over time.
03On the 0-4 survey, average scores were 3.18 for technical capability, 3.76 for ease of use, and 2.52 for satisfaction/acceptability.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for RNs
Read the rest of this summary
You get three full summaries a month, free, and we do not ask for a card. Search, the TL;DRs and your library stay unlimited either way.
What it does not show
The study used a convenience sample of 10 children at one medical center, so it may not represent other children or hospitals. It did not test whether mobile symptom monitoring improved symptoms, care, or outcomes; it only assessed feasibility. Only 7 children were included in the device usability analysis and only 6 were interviewed, so the views are from a subset. Attrition was 30%, and three children left within 10 days because device maintenance felt too difficult while they were ill. The wearable was changed during the study, and the Apple Watch did not collect sleep data without an added app. Missing device data may reflect illness, rash, pain, forgetfulness, or battery limits rather than true disengagement. Device novelty may have influenced participation, especially if children did not already own the devices.
Declared interests
The authors report no conflicts of interest. The publication types list NIH extramural research support.
The easy way to misread this
Do not read this as evidence that wearable or app symptom monitoring improves pediatric symptoms or outcomes. The study measured feasibility in 10 children, not clinical effect; 30% withdrew, and satisfaction averaged 2.52 on 0-4.