ArticleJMIR mHealth and uHealth2020
Smartphone and Mobile Health Apps for Tinnitus: Systematic Identification, Analysis, and Assessment.
Article in JMIR mHealth and uHealth, 2020. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 23 papers, 4 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
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Who cites it
23 citing papers in PubMed, 4 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.
- Effectiveness of Telerehabilitation Interventions for Self-Management of Tinnitus: Update of a Systematic Review.Journal of medical Internet research · 2026Pooled it
- [Apps for tinnitus? A systematic review on quality, intervention components, and behavior change techniques].Bundesgesundheitsblatt, Gesundheitsforschung, Gesundheitsschutz · 2024Pooled it
- Effectiveness of Telerehabilitation Interventions for Self-management of Tinnitus: Systematic Review.Journal of medical Internet research · 2023Pooled it
- Guideline
- Smartphone-Based Cognitive Behavioral Therapy and Customized Sound Therapy for Tinnitus: A Randomized Controlled Trial.The Annals of otology, rhinology, and laryngology · 2025Trial
- Effect of a Tinnitus Sound Therapy Application on Tinnitus Relief.Yonsei medical journal · 2026Article
- Mobile Apps for Tinnitus: Systematic Search in App Stores and Review of Intervention Components and Behavior Change Techniques.JMIR mHealth and uHealth · 2026Article
- Educational Counseling for Tinnitus Management: A Scoping Review of Intervention Structure, Content, and Outcomes.Journal of audiology & otology · 2026Review
- Digital Tinnitus Counseling in Clinical Practice: A Multicenter Randomized Controlled Trial.Audiology research · 2025Article
- Evaluating the efficacy of a smartphone application in reducing preoperative anxiety in children: A randomised controlled trial.Indian journal of anaesthesia · 2025Article
- Exploring App-Based Physiotherapy for Somatic Tinnitus: Results from a Pilot Study.Journal of clinical medicine · 2024Article
- Quality assessment of mHealth apps: a scoping review.Frontiers in health services · 2024Article
- The Effectiveness of a Smartphone Application for Tinnitus Relief.Healthcare (Basel, Switzerland) · 2023Article
- Mental health mobile application self-help for adolescents exhibiting psychological distress: A single case experimental design.Psychology and psychotherapy · 2023Article
- Mental Health Mobile Apps in the French App Store: Assessment Study of Functionality and Quality.JMIR mHealth and uHealth · 2022Article
- Article
- Chronic Tinnitus and the Positive Effects of Sound Treatment via a Smartphone App: Mixed-Design Study.JMIR mHealth and uHealth · 2022Article
- Loneliness and Social Isolation Detection Using Passive Sensing Techniques: Scoping Review.JMIR mHealth and uHealth · 2022Article
- Article
- Assessing the Quality of Mobile Health-Related Apps: Interrater Reliability Study of Two Guides.JMIR mHealth and uHealth · 2021Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
9 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundModern smartphones contain sophisticated high-end hardware features, offering high computational capabilities at extremely manageable costs and have undoubtedly become an integral part in users' daily life. Additionally, smartphones offer a well-established ecosystem that is easily discoverable and accessible via the marketplaces of differing mobile platforms, thus encouraging the development of many smartphone apps. Such apps are not exclusively used for entertainment purposes but are also commonplace in health care and medical use. A variety of those health and medical apps exist within the context of tinnitus, a phantom sound perception in the absence of any physical external source.
objectiveIn this paper, we shed light on existing smartphone apps addressing tinnitus by providing an up-to-date overview.
methodsBased on PRISMA guidelines, we systematically searched and identified existing smartphone apps on the most prominent app markets, namely Google Play Store and Apple App Store. In addition, we applied the Mobile App Rating Scale (MARS) to evaluate and assess the apps in terms of their general quality and in-depth user experience.
resultsOur systematic search and screening of smartphone apps yielded a total of 34 apps (34 Android apps, 26 iOS apps). The mean MARS scores (out of 5) ranged between 2.65-4.60. The Tinnitus Peace smartphone app had the lowest score (mean 2.65, SD 0.20), and Sanvello-Stress and Anxiety Help had the highest MARS score (mean 4.60, SD 0.10). The interrater agreement was substantial (Fleiss κ=0.74), the internal consistency was excellent (Cronbach α=.95), and the interrater reliability was found to be both high and excellent-Guttman λ6=0.94 and intraclass correlation, ICC(2,k) 0.94 (95% CI 0.91-0.97), respectively.
conclusionsThis work demonstrated that there exists a plethora of smartphone apps for tinnitus. All of the apps received MARS scores higher than 2, suggesting that they all have some technical functional value. However, nearly all identified apps were lacking in terms of scientific evidence, suggesting the need for stringent clinical validation of smartphone apps in future. To the best of our knowledge, this work is the first to systematically identify and evaluate smartphone apps within the context of tinnitus.
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