e- & mHealth SIG Newsletter

Welcome to Our September Newsletter

And that’s a wrap! We hope those of you that were able to attend the 2022 ISBNPA Annual Meeting in person enjoyed the novelty of meeting your peers face-to-face again. Despite connecting virtually from halfway across the globe, it was a pleasure to see some live presentations to audiences. I hope that this ‘old way’ of doing things may be slowly returning.

In this newsletter we give you a rundown of the ISBNPA Annual Meeting, including the oral presentation winner, and winner of best publication.

Much has been happening with the SIG in the last 3 months. We have said a (very sad!) goodbye to our Chair of the last 2 years, Andre Müller. Andre has led the SIG through the toughest challenge in its existence, and despite that, maintained a strong and connected committee and community. We thank him for his service and wish him all the very best in his future endeavors. Mavra Ahmed has stepped into the Chair position, while I have moved into Co-Chair. We are both very excited about the next 2 years ahead! Stay tuned for details regarding our upcoming webinar.

A little about me:

I am a Postdoctoral Research Fellow at Australia’s National Science agency, the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation. CSIRO was responsible for inventing and patenting something critical to the modern-day existence, and highly relevant to digital health – WiFi!! My postdoc project draws on the fields of nutrition and behavioural science to develop and test simple and personalised digital interventions to improve dietary intake. I am particularly interested in addressing the excess intake of energy dense, nutrient poor foods and beverages in Australia. On a personal note, we’ve just welcomed a new furry member of the family – Summer the Groodle/Goldendoodle pup (fittingly named in the dreary middle of a South Australian winter!).

Your Co-Chair,

Chelsea Mauch, PhD

CERC Postdoctoral Fellow

Health and Biosecurity

Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation

Adelaide, Australia

Featured Article

This systematic review of systematic reviews and meta-analyses (umbrella review) aimed to examine the effectiveness of activity trackers for improving physical activity and related physiological and psychosocial outcomes in clinical and non-clinical populations.

Activity trackers appear to be effective at increasing physical activity in a variety of age groups and clinical and non-clinical populations. The benefit is clinically important and is sustained over time. Based on the studies evaluated, there is sufficient evidence to recommend the use of activity trackers.

Meet the Lead Author: Ty Ferguson

Let’s meet the first author of this article, recently published in Lancet Digital Health, and learn more about his interests: 

Mr. Ty Ferguson, BPhysio Hons

LINK TO BIO

Ty Ferguson is a Physiotherapist and PhD Candidate currently studying with the Alliance for Research in Exercise, Nutrition and Activity (ARENA) research centre at the University of South Australia. His research areas of interest include accelerometer-based fitness trackers and annual rhythms in 24-hour time use behaviours, including physical activity, sleep duration and sedentary behaviour..

Tell us a little about yourself.

I’m a dad to two (soon to be three) small kids, a PhD student, a paediatric physiotherapist, and I care way too much about the NBA (National Basketball Association - USA).   

How did the paper idea come up?

The volume of research on activity trackers has exploded in recent years. We realised it was time to pull all this literature together to see if there was an overall message about the effectiveness of activity trackers as a health tool. We found that there are a lot of systematic reviews already published that all looked at different populations so the topic was well suited to an umbrella review (systematic review of systematic reviews and meta-analyses)

What tips do you have for future researchers who would like to engage in this topic?

My main advice would be to take the plunge and have a go at an umbrella review. Whilst it is a systematic review dialed up to 11, it’s still the same process. If you have a solid strategy and a great team it’s well worth the effort, plus you gain a new skill set.

What did you learn from this paper that will inform your future work?

Knowing that activity trackers are beneficial for such a variety of population groups is a helpful addition to my toolkit. I hope to do more research with these devices in the future.

Besides this awesome paper, what else have you been up to recently?

I am in the final months of my PhD candidature, so I have just been writing, writing and writing! My third child should arrive in the coming weeks which will no doubt be a welcome change of pace for a little while before getting back into my thesis.

Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, or other - best social media platform and why (research or personal)?

I don’t use social media to share personal content. I do find Twitter and Instagram the best way to keep up to date with my favourite sports leagues, and pinterest has turned into my digital recipe book!

Would you like to be featured in the next newsletter? Let us know!

Email: emhsig.isbnpa@gmail.com

Highlights of ISBNPA 2022

The first ever ISBNPA hybrid meeting was attended by 440 in-person participants in Phoenix, Arizona in June 2022, culminating in several awards and a spectacular banquet at the Phoenix Desert Botanical Garden!

Here are a few pictures from attendees. What a beautiful place to meet and discuss science!

Best Presentation at the ISBNPA Annual Meeting Award

Congratulations to Dr. Chinedum Ojinnaka on being awarded for the best presentation titled “Food Insecurity and Healthcare Information Technology Use among Individuals Living with Chronic Diseases” at the Annual Meeting 2022. 

The presentation explored the relationship between food security status and health information technology among adults living with chronic diseases as well as determinants of health information technology use. Findings illustrated the unique opportunity presented by telehealth in addressing health inequities, particularly among food insecure individuals and the potential for targeted interventions to increase the use of health information technology among food insecure individuals.

Publication of the Year Award

Congratulations to Reza Daryabeygi-Khotbehsara! The team’s paper, published in Journal of Medical Internet Research, explored the integration of psychological theory with theories from other disciplines to develop adaptive and dynamic digital interventions. 

Their findings showed the scarcity of dynamic model-based smartphone studies to reduce sedentary behaviour and promote physical activity and highlight the need for assessing effectiveness of dynamic models in e-&mHealth research.

Diet / Nutrition

1. Richardson S, Lawrence K, Schoenthaler AM, Mann D. A framework for digital health equity. npj Digital Medicine. 2022; 5:119. LINK TO FULL TEXT
2. Battaglia B, Lee L, Jia SS, Partridge SR, Allman-Farinelli M. The Use of Mobile-Based Ecological Momentary Assessment (mEMA) Methodology to Assess Dietary Intake, Food Consumption Behaviours and Context in Young People: A Systematic Review. Healthcare. 2022;10(7). LINK TO FULL TEXT
3. David CNd, Ziegelmann PK, Goveia P, Silvani J, Silveira LRPd, Fuchs SC. The effect of mobile health focused on diet and lifestyle on blood pressure: a systematic review and meta-analysis. European Journal of Preventive Cardiology. 2022;29(7):1142-1155. LINK TO ABSTRACT
4. McClung HL, Raynor HA, Volpe SL, Dwyer JT, Papoutsakis C. A Primer for the Evaluation and Integration of Dietary Intake and Physical Activity Digital Measurement Tools into Nutrition and Dietetics Practice. J Acad Nutr Diet. 2022;122(1):207-218. LINK TO FULL TEXT
5. Matlebjane DA, Ndayizigamiye P, Kante M. Determinants of the Adoption of Mobile Applications that Help Induce Healthy Eating Habits. In: Abdelnour-Nocera J, Makori EO, Robles-Flores JA, Bitso C, eds. Innovation Practices for Digital Transformation in the Global South: IFIP WG 13.8, 9.4, Invited Selection. Cham: Springer International Publishing; 2022:97-112.LINK TO FULL TEXT

Physical Activity

1. Hayotte M, Gioda J, d’Arripe-Longueville F. Effects and Acceptability of Technology-Based Physical Activity Interventions in Bariatric Surgery: a Scoping Review. Obesity Surgery. 2022;32(7):2445-2456. LINK TO FULL TEXT
2. Jung J, Cho I. Promoting Physical Activity and Weight Loss With mHealth Interventions Among Workers: Systematic Review and Meta-analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials. JMIR Mhealth Uhealth. 2022;10(1):e30682. LINK TO FULL TEXT
3. Lodha C, Dhingra K, Mondal R, Goyal S. Smart Healthcare with Fitness Application. Paper presented at: Smart Intelligent Computing and Applications, Volume 2; 2022//, 2022; Singapore. LINK TO FULL TEXT

Sedentary Behavior

1. Baumann H, Fiedler J, Wunsch K, Woll A, Wollesen B. mHealth Interventions to Reduce Physical Inactivity and Sedentary Behavior in Children and Adolescents: Systematic Review and Meta-analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials. JMIR Mhealth Uhealth. 2022;10(5):e35920. LINK TO FULL TEXT
2. Niemiec SLS, Cariño B, Chatfield AJ, Quan K. mHealth-Supported Interventions With Potential to Address Sedentary Behavior in Older Adults: A Scoping Review. Journal of Aging and Physical Activity. 2022;1(aop):1-16. LINK TO ABSTRACT
3. Ueno DT, Guerra PH, Christofoletti AEM, Bonolo A, Nakamura PM, Kokubun E. Mobile health apps to reduce sedentary behavior: a scoping review. Health Promotion International. 2022;37(2):daab124. LINK TO ABSTRACT

Sleep

1. Bandyopadhyay A, Goldstein C. Clinical applications of artificial intelligence in sleep medicine: a sleep clinician’s perspective. Sleep and Breathing. 2022. LINK TO FULL TEXT
2. Chinoy ED, Cuellar JA, Jameson JT, Markwald RR. Performance of Four Commercial Wearable Sleep-Tracking Devices Tested Under Unrestricted Conditions at Home in Healthy Young Adults. Nat Sci Sleep. 2022;14:493-516. LINK TO FULL TEXT
3. Saunders TJ, McIsaac T, Campbell J, et al. Timing of sedentary behaviour and access to sedentary activities in the bedroom and their association with sleep quality and duration in children and youth: a systematic review. Health Promot Chronic Dis Prev Can. 2022;42(4):139-149. LINK TO FULL TEXT
4. Zhu H, Xiao L, Tu A. Effectiveness of technology-based interventions for improving sleep among children: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Sleep Medicine. 2022;91:141-150. LINK TO ABSTRACT

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Email: emhsig.isbnpa@gmail.com

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2021-2022 SIG Committee Members

• Chair: Mavra Ahmed (Canada)
• Co-Chair: Chelsea Mauch (Australia)
• Secretary: Amanda Staiano (USA)
• Social Media: Claire Gough (Australia), Chelsea Kracht (USA)
• Newsletter: Zenong Yin (USA), Chelsea Kracht (USA)
• Events/Awards: Maria Vasiloglou (Switzerland)
• Membership: Vacant
• Past Chairs: Andre Muller (Singapore), Camille Short (Australia)
• Fellows: Carol Maher (Australia), Corneel Vandelanotte (Australia)
• New Members: Chen-Chia Pan (Germany), Miss Tian Wang (Australia), Bridve Sivakumar (Canada), Jasmine Petersen (Australia)

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