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Open Access
CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 · ACI open 2023; 07(01): e23-e29
DOI: 10.1055/s-0043-1766113
Research Article

Relationship between Diabetes Self-Management and the Use of Health Care Apps: A Cross-Sectional Study

Authors

  • Satoshi Inagaki

    1   Faculty of Nursing, Kobe City College of Nursing, Kobe, Japan

  • Kenji Kato

    2   Faculty of Nursing, Kobe Women's University, Kobe, Hyōgo, Japan

  • Kozue Abe

    3   Matsuda Diabetes Clinic, Kobe, Japan

  • Hiroaki Takahashi

    3   Matsuda Diabetes Clinic, Kobe, Japan

  • Tomokazu Matsuda

    3   Matsuda Diabetes Clinic, Kobe, Japan

Funding This work was supported by JSPS KAKENHI Grant-in-Aid for Young Scientists 19K19533. The funding agreement ensured the authors' independence in designing the study, interpreting the data, writing, and publishing the report.
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Abstract

Background People with diabetes are increasingly using smartphone health care applications (apps) to manage their health. However, few studies have examined the percentage of people with diabetes using health care apps and their relationship to self-care.

Objective The purpose of this study is to determine the prevalence of health care apps among people with diabetes and the relationship between app use and self-management.

Methods A cross-sectional study was conducted using an online survey among people with type 2 diabetes. Multiple linear regression analysis was conducted using the scores of the Japanese version of Summary of Diabetes Self-Care Activities and exercise and general diet subscales as the objective variables.

Results Of 253 participants included in this study, 61 (24.1%) used health care apps. Approximately 20% of those aged ≥ 60 also used health care apps. Use of health care apps was a significant predictor of physical activity frequency along with autonomous motivation (p < 0.001). Participants who used health care apps showed a 0.91 point higher physical activity score than those who did not. Regarding the general diet score, the use of health care apps was not significantly associated with dietary habits (p = 0.29).

Conclusion Among people with type 2 diabetes, 24.1% used health care apps, and self-management scores of exercise were significantly higher in people with diabetes who used health care apps than in those who did not.

Keywords

patient self-care - home care and e-health - telemedicine and telehealth - consumer health informatics - diabetes mellitus - chronic disease

Protection of Human and Animal Subjects

This study was conducted in compliance with the World Medical Association Declaration of Helsinki on ethical principles for medical research involving human subjects, and it was reviewed by the Institutional Review Board of Kobe City College of Nursing.


Ethical Approval

All participants provided written informed consent before initiation of the study. The study protocol was reviewed and approved by the Institutional Review Board of Kobe City College of Nursing (20122-05).


Data Sharing Policy

Data are available upon reasonable request. The data that support the findings of this study are available from the corresponding author upon reasonable request. The approval of the Institutional Review Board of Kobe City College of Nursing may be required to determine whether the data acquisition is reasonable.




Publication History

Received: 27 July 2022

Accepted: 16 February 2023

Article published online:
20 April 2023

© 2023. The Author(s). This is an open access article published by Thieme under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonDerivative-NonCommercial License, permitting copying and reproduction so long as the original work is given appropriate credit. Contents may not be used for commercial purposes, or adapted, remixed, transformed or built upon. (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/)

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