Monitoring wellness in Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease using the myCOPD app

Pickering, Brian, Duckworth, Christopher, Boniface, Michael, Blythin, Alison and Wilkinson, Tom M.A. (2023) Monitoring wellness in Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease using the myCOPD app. In, Handbook on Big Data for Healthcare - from theory to practice. (In Press)

Abstract

According to the World Health Organisation, Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) is the third leading cause of death worldwide. Risks include environmental factors, especially pollution, and behaviours such as smoking. It is persistent and progressive, with an early diagnosis and treatment benefit in controlling the progression of the disease and reduce flare ups, known as exacerbations. Smartphone and desktop apps which allow regular self-reporting are one way that can engage individuals in the self-management of their condition. Potentially, the data from these apps represent a significant source of information to support care. This study looked at self-reported well-being measures along with other indicators from the myCOPD app. In this chapter, we focus primarily on the prediction of exacerbations using these data, while also providing some preliminary insights into app-user behaviours. Our results indicate that it is possible to make some exacerbation predictions from the myCOPD app from relative few data types, but that integrating environmental data sources such as weather and pollution remains problematic. Further, app usage patterns show individual differences in how well-being is reported rather than seasonal effects. The results have led to a significant multi-disciplinary follow-on project to carry the prediction work forward.

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Contributors

Author: Brian Pickering

Author: Christopher Duckworth

Author: Michael Boniface

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