Validation and Reliability of a Smartphone Application for the International Prostate Symptom Score Questionnaire: A Randomized Repeated Measures Crossover Study

Background

Smartphone-based assessment may be a useful diagnostic and monitoring tool for patients. There have been many attempts to create a smartphone diagnostic tool for clinical use in various medical fields but few have demonstrated scientific validity.

Objective

The purpose of this study was to develop a smartphone application of the International Prostate Symptom Score (IPSS) and to demonstrate its validity and reliability.

Methods

From June 2012 to May 2013, a total of 1581 male participants (≥40 years old), with or without lower urinary tract symptoms (LUTS), visited our urology clinic via the health improvement center at Soonchunhyang University Hospital (Republic of Korea) and were enrolled in this study. A randomized repeated measures crossover design was employed using a smartphone application of the IPSS and the conventional paper form of the IPSS. Paired t test under a hypothesis of non-inferior trial was conducted. For the reliability test, the intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC) was measured.

Results

The total score of the IPSS (P=.289) and each item of the IPSS (P=.157-1.000) showed no differences between the paper version and the smartphone version of the IPSS. The mild, moderate, and severe LUTS groups showed no differences between the two versions of the IPSS. A significant correlation was noted in the total group (ICC=.935, P<.001). The mild, moderate, and severe LUTS groups also showed significant correlations (ICC=.616, .549, and .548 respectively, all P<.001).There was selection bias in this study, as only participants who had smartphones could participate.

Conclusions

The validity and reliability of the smartphone application version were comparable to the conventional paper version of the IPSS. The smartphone application of the IPSS could be an effective method for measuring lower urinary tract symptoms.