{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,9,24]],"date-time":"2026-09-24T04:17:53Z","timestamp":1790223473589,"version":"4.1.0"},"reference-count":26,"publisher":"Springer Science and Business Media LLC","issue":"12","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2024,9,28]],"date-time":"2024-09-28T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1727481600000},"content-version":"tdm","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0"},{"start":{"date-parts":[[2024,9,28]],"date-time":"2024-09-28T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1727481600000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0"}],"funder":[{"name":"Medizinische Hochschule Brandenburg CAMPUS GmbH"}],"content-domain":{"domain":["link.springer.com"],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["Rheumatol Int"],"abstract":"<jats:title>Abstract<\/jats:title><jats:p>Non-specific low back pain (NLBP) is prevalent among patients with rheumatic conditions. Digital health applications (DiGAs) provide reimbursed, personalized home treatment for patients, promising to overcome limitations of traditional healthcare systems. However, the adoption and effectiveness of back pain-specific DiGAs in rheumatology are not well understood. This study aims to explore the experiences and perspectives of a diverse group of rheumatology stakeholders regarding the use of DiGAs for back pain management. Qualitative interviews and a focus group discussion were conducted with a wide range of stakeholders including rheumatic patients, rheumatologists, nurses and DiGA producers. The data were analysed using qualitative content analysis. The study included 15 interviews (10 rheumatic patients, 4 rheumatologists, 1 DiGA producer) and 1 focus group with mixed participants (<jats:italic>n<\/jats:italic>\u2009=\u200912). Most stakeholders valued the instant access to personalized and effective back pain treatment provided by DiGAs. Patients appreciated the flexibility and ease of use of DiGAs which can be used anywhere and anytime. Concerns were raised about insufficient guidance regarding correct execution of exercises, which was seen as potentially dangerous and unsettling for patients. Healthcare professionals (HCPs) highlighted barriers, such as the lack of reimbursement, time constraints, and inadequate DiGA-specific education as barriers to prescribing DiGAs. Additionally, poor patient onboarding often led to delays, increased skepticism, and premature discontinuation of therapy. Stakeholders emphasized the challenges of current care driven by a shortage of HCPs and generally supported usage of back pain DiGAs. Various barriers and solution approaches were identified to enhance the performance, usability, and implementation of DiGAs in rheumatology.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.1007\/s00296-024-05726-x","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2024,9,28]],"date-time":"2024-09-28T13:02:22Z","timestamp":1727528542000},"page":"2977-2987","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1007\/springer_crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":12,"title":["Back on track \u2013 digital health applications to treat back pain of rheumatic patients? Results of a qualitative interview study"],"prefix":"10.1007","volume":"44","author":[{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0009-0009-9616-6278","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Katharina","family":"Boy","sequence":"first","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0003-3847-4861","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Susann","family":"May","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0001-5762-9182","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Hannah","family":"Labinsky","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0001-6688-2155","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Harriet","family":"Morf","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0003-3645-1033","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Martin","family":"Heinze","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0001-6500-7180","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Jan","family":"Leipe","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-8031-2973","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Sebastian","family":"Kuhn","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0001-8740-9615","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Georg","family":"Schett","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0001-9695-0657","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Johannes","family":"Knitza","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0001-8571-7286","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Felix","family":"Muehlensiepen","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"297","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2024,9,28]]},"reference":[{"key":"5726_CR1","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"1","DOI":"10.1590\/S0034-8910.2015049005874","volume":"49","author":"RD Meucci","year":"2015","unstructured":"Meucci RD, Fassa AG, Faria NM (2015) Prevalence of chronic low back pain: systematic review. 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All procedures performed in studies involving human participants were in accordance with the ethical standards of the institutional and\/or national research committee and with the 1964 Helsinki declaration and its later amendments or comparable ethical standards. Informed consent was obtained from all individual respondents included in the study. We confirm that this work is original and has not been published elsewhere, in whole or in part, nor is it under consideration for publication elsewhere. We acknowledge the use of the ChatGPT language model (GPT-4 OpenAI, Inc., San Francisco, CA, USA) to refine segments of this manuscript.","order":2,"name":"Ethics","group":{"name":"EthicsHeading","label":"Ethical approval"}},{"value":"JK: Consultant for Abbvie, ABATAON, Chugai, GAIA, Vila Health and research support from Abbvie, ABATAON, Vila Health. The remaining authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest.","order":3,"name":"Ethics","group":{"name":"EthicsHeading","label":"Conflict of interest"}},{"value":"Muehlensiepen, F., May, S., Boy, K., Heinze, M., Schett, G., & Knitza, J. (2023). [DiGAs for the treatment of comorbidities in rheumatological care: A qualitative study of patients\u2019 perspectives.] Meeting abstract presented at the 22nd German Congress for Health Services Research (DKVF), Berlin, Germany, October 4\u20136, 2023. D\u00fcsseldorf: German Medical Science GMS Publishing House. .","order":4,"name":"Ethics","group":{"name":"EthicsHeading","label":"Related congress abstract publication"}}]}}