ReviewJMIR mental health2022
Effectiveness and Minimum Effective Dose of App-Based Mobile Health Interventions for Anxiety and Depression Symptom Reduction: Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.
Review in JMIR mental health, 2022. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 20 papers, 3 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
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.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
20 citing papers in PubMed, 3 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.
- Effectiveness of just-in-time adaptive interventions for improving mental health and psychological well-being: a systematic review and meta-analysis.BMJ mental health · 2025Pooled it
- Joint Clinical Practice Guideline on Benzodiazepine Tapering: Considerations When Risks Outweigh Benefits.Journal of general internal medicine · 2025Guideline
- App-Based Interventions for Moderate to Severe Depression: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.JAMA network open · 2023Pooled it
- Efficacy of a Mobile App-Based Intervention for Young Adults With Anxiety Disorders: A Randomized Clinical Trial.JAMA network open · 2024Trial
- Testing Mechanisms of Change for Text Message-Delivered Cognitive Behavioral Therapy: Randomized Clinical Trial for Young Adult Depression.JMIR mHealth and uHealth · 2023Trial
- Efficacy of Slow-Paced Breathing as a Just-in-Time Adaptive Intervention for Anxiety-A Randomized Controlled Study.Applied psychophysiology and biofeedback · 2026Article
- Unified protocol in online group versus blended format for treating emotional disorders in university students: Preliminary results on feasibility at 6-month follow-up.Psychology and psychotherapy · 2026Article
- Patient and Care Team Perspectives of Barriers to and Facilitators for the Implementation of a Digital Health Program for Depression in Primary Care: Qualitative Study.Journal of medical Internet research · 2026Article
- eHealth Literacy Interventions: Scoping Review.Interactive journal of medical research · 2025Review
- Healthcare effects and evidence robustness of reimbursable digital health applications in Germany: a systematic review.NPJ digital medicine · 2025Article
- Predictors and Correlates of Depression and Anxiety Symptom Trajectories in a Large Digital Mental Health Provider: Retrospective Analysis of Data From Rula Health.Journal of medical Internet research · 2025Article
- Just-in-Time Delivery of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy-Based Exercises: Single-Case Experimental Design With Random Multiple Baselines.JMIR formative research · 2025Article
- mHealth-Augmented Care for Reducing Depression Symptom Severity Among Patients With Chronic Pain: Exploratory, Retrospective Cohort Study.JMIR mHealth and uHealth · 2025Article
- RegulEm, an unified protocol based-app for the treatment of emotional disorders: a parallel mixed methods usability and quality study.BMC medical informatics and decision making · 2024Article
- Effect of a smartphone-based physical intervention on depression, fitness factors and movement characteristics in adults.BMC public health · 2024Article
- Applying Digital Technology to Understand Human Experiences of Climate Change Impacts on Food Security and Mental Health: Scoping Review.JMIR public health and surveillance · 2024Article
- Use and Engagement With Low-Intensity Cognitive Behavioral Therapy Techniques Used Within an App to Support Worry Management: Content Analysis of Log Data.JMIR mHealth and uHealth · 2024Article
- An umbrella review of effectiveness and efficacy trials for app-based health interventions.NPJ digital medicine · 2023Review
- A Smartphone-Based Intervention for Anxiety and Depression in Racially and Ethnically Diverse Adults (EASE): Protocol for a Randomized Controlled Trial.JMIR research protocols · 2022Article
- Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
7 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundMobile health (mHealth) apps offer new opportunities to deliver psychological treatments for mental illness in an accessible, private format. The results of several previous systematic reviews support the use of app-based mHealth interventions for anxiety and depression symptom management. However, it remains unclear how much or how long the minimum treatment "dose" is for an mHealth intervention to be effective. Just-in-time adaptive intervention (JITAI) has been introduced in the mHealth domain to facilitate behavior changes and is positioned to guide the design of mHealth interventions with enhanced adherence and effectiveness.
objectiveInspired by the JITAI framework, we conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis to evaluate the dose effectiveness of app-based mHealth interventions for anxiety and depression symptom reduction.
methodsWe conducted a literature search on 7 databases (ie, Ovid MEDLINE, Embase, PsycInfo, Scopus, Cochrane Library (eg, CENTRAL), ScienceDirect, and ClinicalTrials, for publications from January 2012 to April 2020. We included randomized controlled trials (RCTs) evaluating app-based mHealth interventions for anxiety and depression. The study selection and data extraction process followed the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines. We estimated the pooled effect size using Hedge g and appraised study quality using the revised Cochrane risk-of-bias tool for RCTs.
resultsWe included 15 studies involving 2627 participants for 18 app-based mHealth interventions. Participants in the intervention groups showed a significant effect on anxiety (Hedge g=-.10, 95% CI -0.14 to -0.06, I2=0%) but not on depression (Hedge g=-.08, 95% CI -0.23 to 0.07, I2=4%). Interventions of at least 7 weeks' duration had larger effect sizes on anxiety symptom reduction.
conclusionsThere is inconclusive evidence for clinical use of app-based mHealth interventions for anxiety and depression at the current stage due to the small to nonsignificant effects of the interventions and study quality concerns. The recommended dose of mHealth interventions and the sustainability of intervention effectiveness remain unclear and require further investigation.
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