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06/08/2023

The Tech Solutions Helping Battle Depression and Anxiety

Article Excerpt: Though COVID-19 is no longer classified as a global health emergency, the spike in mental health disorders that accompanied the rapid spread of the virus hasn’t abated… the rise in mental health conditions has also meant that more people are comfortable seeking support. As a result, there’s never been more demand for health and wellbeing services with the behavioral health market expected to grow to $105 billion by 2029. And tech innovators continue to develop solutions that address specific gaps in the treatment pipeline, democratize access to treatment such as therapy and provide tools to manage our wellbeing holistically.

Full Article: https://tinyurl.com/yckvvf35

Article Source: 150sec

Posted in: Emerging Technologies // Tagged: ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ;
03/27/2023

Targeting Anxiety to Improve Sleep Disturbance: A Randomized Clinical Trial of App-Based Mindfulness Training

Gao M, Roy A, Deluty A, Sharkey KM, Hoge EA, Liu T, Brewer JA. Targeting Anxiety to Improve Sleep Disturbance: A Randomized Clinical Trial of App-Based Mindfulness Training. Psychosom Med. 2022 Jun 1;84(5):632-642. doi: 10.1097/PSY.0000000000001083.

A randomized controlled trial was conducted among adults reporting worry that interfered with sleep to test a mindfulness training app. Eighty participants were randomized to treatment as usual (TAU) or TAU plus app-based mindfulness training for anxiety. The app-based intervention, Unwinding Anxiety, included 30 core modules and 8 “theme weeks” of brief mindfulness training using videos, app-initiated check-ins, guided meditations, and short mindfulness exercises. All participants were provided Fitbit devices to track their sleep time and efficiency, completed self-report sleep diaries, and received check-ins and reminders. The intervention was completed over 2 months and participants completed assessments at 1 month (during treatment), at end of treatment, and 2 months post treatment. The primary outcome was change in worry-related sleep disturbances assessed via self-report. At the end of treatment, worry-related sleep disturbance scores significantly decreased by 27% in the treatment group compared to 6% in the TAU group. There were no significant between-group differences in average total sleep time or efficiency at the end of treatment. Results demonstrated an association between mindfulness training and decreased worry-related sleep disturbance. Digital therapeutics like app-based mindfulness training show clinical efficacy in improving sleep.

Posted in: Cutting Edge Literature // Tagged: ; ; ; ;
10/16/2022

WSU Study Finds Smart Home Technology Could Help Those Recovering from Opioid Use Disorder

Article Excerpt: Disrupted sleep is a common complaint for people actively trying to quit highly addictive opioids. According to a release from WSU, methadone is effective at reducing cravings and withdrawal, but it is often prescribed once daily and adjusting for the proper dosage can take time. Before a patient and doctor can get the dosage right, treatments can wear off during the night, returning withdrawal symptoms and pain – which increases the risk of resuming drug use and accidental overdose. The study, published in the journal Pain Management Nursing, found home sensors matched other sleep monitoring methods 89% of the time.

Full Article: https://tinyurl.com/4x79bx6w

Article Source: Fox 28

Posted in: Emerging Technologies, Uncategorized // Tagged: ; ; ; ; ; ;
10/10/2022

Home Sensors Can Detect Opioid Withdrawal Signs at Night

Article Excerpt: Some smart home technology could help curb opioid overdose. A Washington State University pilot study showed that a set of noninvasive home sensors could provide accurate information about overnight restlessness and sleep problems for people recovering from opioid use disorder.

Full Article: https://tinyurl.com/rvvr3ypd

Article Source: Science Daily

Posted in: Emerging Technologies // Tagged: ; ; ; ; ;
10/06/2022

Integrated Fitness Tracker, Mobile Health App Potentially Improves Teachers’ Mental Wellness – Study

Article Excerpt: Corporate mental wellness platform MindFi and Fitbit (now part of Google) have undertaken a pilot study to assess the impact of using a combined fitness wearable device and mental health app on users. Their 10-week study engaged around 100 public school teachers in Singapore and evaluated their progress and lifestyle changes, including activity level, sleep and heart rate.

Full Article: https://tinyurl.com/bde5j9f7

Article Source: MobiHealthNews

Posted in: Emerging Technologies // Tagged: ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ;
09/19/2022

The Efficacy of “Foundations,” a Digital Mental Health App to Improve Mental Well-being During COVID-19: Proof-of-Principle Randomized Controlled Trial

Catuara-Solarz S, Skorulski B, Estella-Aguerri I, Avella-Garcia C, Shepherd S, Stott E, Hemmings N, Ruiz de Villa A, Schulze L, Dix S. The Efficacy of “Foundations,” a Digital Mental Health App to Improve Mental Well-being During COVID-19: Proof-of-Principle Randomized Controlled Trial. JMIR Mhealth Uhealth 2022;10(7):e30976 DOI: 10.2196/30976

This study aimed to evaluate the efficacy of a mobile app, “Foundations”, to reduce self-reported symptoms of anxiety and stress in a randomized control trial during the COVID-19 pandemic in the United Kingdom. Adults (N=136) with mild to severe anxiety and moderate to high levels of perceived stress were randomly assigned to four weeks of the Foundations app or a waitlist control. The Foundations app includes cognitive behavioral therapy interventions and psychoeducation aimed at reducing stress and promoting mental well-being. Activities consist of reading articles, journaling, meditation, and relaxation. Resilience, anxiety, well-being, and sleep were assessed at baseline, weeks 2 and 4. Perceived stress was assessed weekly. The intervention group (n=62) showed significant improvement in anxiety (p=0.04), resilience (p<0.001), sleep (p=0.01), and mental well-being (p=0.02) compared to the control group (n=74). This improvement was observed within 2 weeks of the intervention and sustained at week 4. There was no significant difference in perceived stress between the intervention and control groups (p=0.20). Overall, this study provides a proof of principle that the Foundations app may improve mental well-being, anxiety, resilience, and sleep. Future research should evaluate the long-term effects of the Foundations app and the scalability and cost-effectiveness of the intervention. The passive nature of the control group in this study does not rule out placebo effects in the digital intervention group and future research would benefit from an active control condition.

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08/01/2022

Digital Therapeutic Improves Symptoms of Insomnia, Anxiety, Depression for 6 Months

Article Excerpt: Data from a real-world study revealed that treatment with prescription digital therapeutic Somryst achieved reductions in symptoms of insomnia, anxiety and depression, per a late-breaking poster at the SLEEP meeting.Somryst is the only FDA-authorized prescription digital therapeutic for the treatment of chronic insomnia, manufacturer Pear Therapeutics stated in a related press release. “Chronic insomnia is often associated with depression and anxiety so it’s important to evaluate the impact of insomnia treatment on such psychiatric comorbidities,” Yuri Maricich, MD, MBA, Pear Therapeutics chief medical officer and head of development, said in the release.

Full Article: https://tinyurl.com/3drnwpnx

Article Source: Healio

Posted in: Emerging Technologies // Tagged: ; ; ; ; ; ; ;
01/23/2022

New Predictive Computer Program Could Help Detect Individuals at High Risk of Depression

Article Excerpt: A team of scientists from Nanyang Technological University, Singapore (NTU Singapore) has developed a predictive computer program that could be used to detect individuals who are at increased risk of depression. In trials using data from groups of depressed and healthy participants, the program achieved an accuracy of 80 per cent in detecting those individuals with a high risk of depression and those with no risk.

Full Article: https://tinyurl.com/mvtmbc55

Article Source: News Medical

Posted in: Emerging Technologies // Tagged: ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ;
11/29/2021

Elena+ care for COVID-19, a pandemic lifestyle care intervention: Intervention design and study protocol

Ollier J, Neff S, Dworschak C, Sejdiji A, Santhanam P, Keller R, et al. (2021). Elena+ care for COVID-19, a pandemic lifestyle care intervention: Intervention design and study protocol. Frontiers in Public Health. 9:625640. doi: 10.3389/fpubh.2021.625640

Researchers developed a new intervention to address the health impacts of COVID-19 and social isolation requirements. Elena+ is a digital health intervention delivered in a smartphone app available in iOS and Android devices in three languages (English, European Spanish, and Latin American Spanish) across seven countries. The study team plans to expand the availability of Elena+ in additional languages and countries. The app includes a conversational agent to interact with users and track individual progress over time. The app also offers personalized coaching across lifestyle health areas such as COVID-19 information, physical activity, mental health, sleep, and diet and nutrition. The app collects users’ ratings of their experiences, social demographics, and user profiles. The study team will assess the Elena+ intervention by analyzing participants’ self-reported health outcomes (COVID-19, diet and nutrition, sleep, anxiety, loneliness, physical activity, mental resources, wellbeing), user-selected behavioral intentions at the end of each coaching session, and self-reported actual behaviors. The study team will use panel data methods to track changes in health outcomes over time. Elena+ is designed to provide users quick access to information and lifestyle care through a digital health platform during the COVID-19 pandemic. The study will evaluate the intervention’s effectiveness and identify improvements needed to evolve and adapt.

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