Guideline-Based Cardiovascular Risk Assessment Delivered by an mHealth App: Development Study.

BACKGROUND: Identifying high-risk individuals is crucial for preventing cardiovascular diseases (CVDs). Currently, risk assessment is mostly performed by physicians. Mobile health apps could help decouple the determination of risk from medical resources by allowing unrestricted self-assessment. The respective test results need to be interpretable for laypersons. OBJECTIVE: Together with a patient organization, we aimed to design a digital risk calculator that allows people to individually assess and optimize their CVD risk. The risk calculator was integrated into the mobile health app HerzFit, which provides the respective background information. METHODS: To cover a broad spectrum of individuals for both primary and secondary prevention, we integrated the respective scores (Framingham 10-year CVD, Systematic Coronary Risk Evaluation 2, Systematic Coronary Risk Evaluation 2 in Older Persons, and Secondary Manifestations Of Arterial Disease) into a single risk calculator that was recalibrated for the German population. In primary prevention, an individual's heart age is estimated, which gives the user an easy-to-understand metric for assessing cardiac health. For secondary prevention, the risk of recurrence was assessed. In addition, a comparison of expected to mean and optimal risk levels was determined. The risk calculator is available free of charge. Data safety is ensured by processing the data locally on the users' smartphones. RESULTS: Offering a risk calculator to the general population requires the use of multiple instruments, as each provides only a limited spectrum in terms of age and risk distribution. The integration of 4 internationally recommended scores allows risk calculation in individuals aged 30 to 90 years with and without CVD. Such integration requires recalibration and harmonization to provide consistent and plausible estimates. In the first 14 months after the launch, the HerzFit calculator was downloaded more than 96,000 times, indicating great demand. Public information campaigns proved effective in publicizing the risk calculator and contributed significantly to download numbers. CONCLUSIONS: The HerzFit calculator provides CVD risk assessment for the general population. The public demonstrated great demand for such a risk calculator as it was downloaded up to 10,000 times per month, depending on campaigns creating awareness for the instrument.

Towards Preventing Gaps in Health Care Systems through Smartphone Use: Analysis of ARKit for Accurate Measurement of Facial Distances in Different Angles.

There is a growing consensus in the global health community that the use of communication technologies will be an essential factor in ensuring universal health coverage of the world's population. New technologies can only be used profitably if their accuracy is sufficient. Therefore, we explore the feasibility of using Apple's ARKit technology to accurately measure the distance from the user's eye to their smartphone screen. We developed an iOS application for measuring eyes-to-phone distances in various angles, using the built-in front-facing-camera and TrueDepth sensor. The actual position of the phone is precisely controlled and recorded, by fixing the head position and placing the phone in a robotic arm. Our results indicate that ARKit is capable of producing accurate measurements, with overall errors ranging between 0.88% and 9.07% from the actual distance, across various head positions. The accuracy of ARKit may be impacted by several factors such as head size, position, device model, and temperature. Our findings suggest that ARKit is a useful tool in the development of applications aimed at preventing eye damage caused by smartphone use.