Mobile health technologies for workers' health and wellbeing: A systematic search of mHealth applications in Brazil.

BACKGROUND

Inadequate working conditions and sedentary work can exert a negative impact on workers' health and wellbeing, leading to musculoskeletal disorders and disability. Mobile health (mHealth) applications (apps) have high potential for the self-management of workers' health.

OBJECTIVE

To identify mHealth apps aimed at promoting workers' health and wellbeing available in Brazilian online stores and assess these apps in terms of engagement, functionality, aesthetics and information quality.

METHODS

A systematic search for apps was conducted in the Brazilian online App Store and Play Store in December 2022. Only smartphone apps in Brazilian Portuguese directed at workers' health were assessed. The appraisal of the quality of the applications was performed using the Mobile App Rating Scale (MARS).

RESULTS

Among the 3449 mHealth apps found, ten were eligible for inclusion. The mean overall score was 3.15 ± 0.91 on a scale of 1-5. The lowest score was found for the "credibility" item. Exercises and breaks were the most frequent strategies. Most apps provided low-quality information from questionable sources and therefore received a mean score of 2.1 ± 1.5 on the MARS information subscale.

CONCLUSION

Ten relevant mHealth apps were eligible for inclusion. The mHealth apps for the promotion of workers' health and wellbeing currently available in Brazil exhibited moderate quality and limited functionality.