Mobile Applications Used in Multiple Sclerosis

摘要

Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a chronic neurological disease. It is characterized by inflammatory damage to central nervous system structures and neurodegenerative brain changes. Although early diagnostics and consequent pharmacological treatment can slow down MS progression, maintain long-term functionality of patients, and prevent permanent damage to their nerve structures, the disease itself cannot be fully cured. Therefore, apart from the traditional pharmacological therapies, alternative strategies to the improvement of MS symptoms are applied. Most recently, with the emergences of modem technologies, mobile devices and applications started to be used by MS patients. The purpose of this article is to discuss the mobile applications (apps) used in MS and summarize their benefits and limitations for MS patients. The methods used in this study include a literature review of available sources found in the world's acknowledged databases Web of Science, Scopus, and PubMed, as well as the methods of comparison and evaluation of the findings from the selected studies. The results indicate that mobile apps can serve as appropriate self-management tools for MS patients. Their benefits, such as reliability, cost-effectiveness, or improvement of symptoms, as well as patients' awareness of these advantages make mobile apps useful and motivating tools in the fight with MS. However, more research should be conducted in the area of the efficacy on the use of mobile apps by people with MS. Currently, there are no evidence-based studies on this topic.