Background: Obesity is a large contributor to preventable chronic diseases and health care costs. The efficacy of wearable devices for weight management has been researched; however, there is limited knowledge on how these devices are perceived by users.
Objective: This study aimed to review user perspectives on wearable technology for weight management in people who are overweight and obese.
Methods: We searched the online databases Pubmed, Scopus, Embase, and the Cochrane library for literature published from 2008 onward. We included all types of studies using a wearable device for delivering weight-loss interventions in adults who are overweight or obese, and qualitative data were collected about participants' perspectives on the device. We performed a quality assessment using criteria relevant to different study types. The Cochrane risk of bias tool was used for randomized controlled trials. The Risk of Bias in Non-randomized Studies - of Interventions (ROBINS-I) was used for nonrandomized studies. The Oxman and Guyatt Criteria were used for systematic reviews. We used the critical appraisal checklist for qualitative studies. Data were extracted into a data extraction sheet and thematically analyzed.
Results: We included 19 studies: 5 randomized controlled trials, 6 nonrandomized studies, 5 qualitative studies, and 3 reviews. Mixed perceptions existed for different constructs of wearable technologies, which reflects the differences in the suitability of wearable technology interventions for different individuals in different contexts. This also indicates that interventions were not often tailored to participants' motivations. In addition, very few wearable technology interventions included a thorough qualitative analysis of the participants' view on important features of the intervention that made it successful.
Conclusions: This study highlights the importance of determining the type of intervention most suitable for an individual before the intervention is used. Our findings could help participants find a suitable intervention that is most effective for them. Further research needs to develop a user-centered tool for obtaining comprehensive user feedback.
Trial registration: PROSPERO CRD42018096932; https://www.crd.york.ac.uk/prospero/display_record.php?RecordID=96932.
Keywords: activity tracker; digital technology; mobile health; obesity; overweight; wearable; wearable device; wearable electronic devices; wearable technology; weight loss.
©Ruiqi Hu, Michelle Helena van Velthoven, Edward Meinert. Originally published in JMIR mHealth and uHealth (http://mhealth.jmir.org), 13.01.2020.