Mobile Apps for Drug-Drug Interaction Checks in Chinese App Stores: Systematic Review and Content Analysis

Area of Science:

• Digital Health
• Pharmacovigilance
• Health Informatics

Background:

• Computerized drug-drug interaction (DDI) alert systems are not widespread in China.
• Healthcare providers increasingly use mobile health (mHealth) applications for drug information, including DDIs.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the quality and content of mHealth apps used for DDI checking in Chinese app stores.

Main Methods:

• A systematic review identified 7 mHealth apps for DDI checking on Chinese iOS and Android platforms.
• The Mobile App Rating Scale (MARS) was used to assess app quality, with data analyzed using descriptive statistics and interrater agreement measures (Cohen kappa, Fleiss kappa, Krippendorff alpha).

Main Results:

• The average MARS score was 3.69/5, with significant variation in the information section (1.41-4.60).
• Functionality scored highest (4.05), while engagement scored lowest (3.16).
• Only 3 of the 7 apps cited sources, and some highly downloaded apps provided incorrect DDI information.

Conclusions:

• While many mHealth apps offer high-quality DDI information, inaccuracies in some popular apps present a significant patient safety concern.
• The variable quality underscores the need for rigorous evaluation and potential regulation of mHealth apps used in clinical decision-making.