Evaluating Align's Effectiveness as a Telemedicine Physical Therapy App for Treating Neck Pain in Office Workers
Main Article Content
Abstract
Background: With rising healthcare costs that affect each patient's health and well-being, neck pain is emerging as a significant public health concern. One-year prevalence rates of cervical pain are significantly greater in computer professionals than in the overall population, indicating that they represent a particular population at high risk of developing neck discomfort. Patient-driven and patient-centred treatment must be included. One new development in healthcare is the use of mobile applications for management. The ability of mobile health (mHealth) to transcend geographical and temporal limitations and reach patients and healthcare professionals at any time and place makes it a preferred way of healthcare delivery. Nevertheless, there is scientific evidence for only a few mobile healthcare management applications.
Objectives: To evaluate the usability and effectiveness of “Align” a mobile-based physical therapy application for treating office workers' neck pain.
Methodology: Participants in this experimental descriptive study were enrolled after being assessed for inclusion criteria, and had pre- and post-assessments for outcome measurements, after which the intervention protocol was obtained via the smartphone mobile app. Twelve sessions in total over two weeks.
Results: A decrease in the Numerical Pain Rating Scale scores (p<0.005) indicated a significant reduction in neck pain among the participants (N=107) who finished the intervention protocol. The Neck Disability score also showed a significant improvement, dropping by 4 points (p<0.005). Participants also demonstrated higher Positive Functioning Inventory and Postural Awareness scores (p<0.005).
Conclusion: This study demonstrates the beneficial effects of the created mobile application for physical therapy for neck pain. The encouraging outcomes point to the necessity of additional research, such as randomised controlled trials, to determine how beneficial mobile applications are compared to standard clinical care.