Open AccessMobile Applications in Clinical and Perioperative Care for Anesthesia: Narrative Review
Author(s) -
Sabrina Pan,
Lisa Q. Rong
Publication year - 2021
Publication title -
jmir. journal of medical internet research/journal of medical internet research
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.446
H-Index - 142
eISSN - 1439-4456
pISSN - 1438-8871
DOI - 10.2196/25115
Subject(s) - medicine , perioperative , psychological intervention , health care , scopus , workflow , mobile technology , anesthesiology , medline , mobile device , medical emergency , nursing , anesthesia , world wide web , computer science , database , political science , law , economics , economic growth
Background The increasing use of smartphones by providers and patients alike demonstrates that digital health utilizing mobile applications has the potential to transform perioperative care and education in anesthesia. Objective This literature review describes the current scope of the use of mobile applications in anesthesiology. Methods Literature was searched using PubMed, Scopus, and clinicaltrials.gov for articles published from January 1, 2010, through April 1, 2020. Only English language studies were included. Articles were included if they examined the use of a mobile health application in the setting of anesthesia or the perioperative (immediate preoperative, intraoperative, and postoperative) period. Studies were excluded if they explored video interventions or did not examine the feasibility or efficacy of the mobile app. Results We included 29 articles, and three areas of clinical functionality were identified: patient-centered care (preoperative, intraoperative, and postoperative), systems-based improvement, and medical education. Several studies demonstrate the feasibility and reliability of mobile apps in these areas, but many are only tested for efficacy in simulated environments or with small patient samples Conclusions Mobile health applications show promise in improving communication between anesthesiologists, improving workflow efficiency, enhancing medical education, and reducing hospital costs. However, there is a need for validation and improvement before full implementation by the provider, patients, and hospital systems. Future studies are needed to demonstrate meaningful health outcomes to create guidelines and recommendations specific to the application of mobile technology to health care.