Evidence map›Paper›PMID 40917811›Full record

ArticleInternet interventions2025

Acceptability and efficacy of a smartphone application intervention for mental health care based on interpersonal psychotherapy for improving depression symptoms in prenatal women: Protocol for a randomized controlled trial.

Yuko Toshishige, Natsumi Chatani, Shiori Kawasaki, Shinobu Goto, Yuki Yoshida, Yusaku Takahashi, Misaki Shimasaki, Takuya Okami, Gaku Sakaguchi, Toshiaki A Furukawa and 2 more

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Internet interventions, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 2 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
2citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

2 citing papers in PubMed.

  1. Article
  2. Review
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

12 authors.

Yuko ToshishigeDepartment of Psychiatry and Cognitive-Behavioral Medicine, Nagoya City University Graduate School of Medical Sciences, 1 Kawasumi, Mizuho-cho, Mizuho-ku, Nagoya 467-8601, Japan.
Natsumi ChataniNew Business Promotion Dept., Shionogi & Co., Ltd., 3-1-8 Doshomachi, Chuo-ku, Osaka 541-0045, Japan.
Shiori KawasakiNew Business Promotion Dept., Shionogi & Co., Ltd., 3-1-8 Doshomachi, Chuo-ku, Osaka 541-0045, Japan.
Shinobu GotoDepartment of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Nagoya City University Graduate School of Medical Sciences, 1 Kawasumi, Mizuho-cho, Mizuho-ku, Nagoya 467-8601, Japan.
Yuki YoshidaData Science Department., Shionogi & Co., Ltd., Midosuji MTR Building 4F, 3-6-3 Awajimachi, Chuo-ku, Osaka 541-0047, Japan.
Yusaku TakahashiData Science Department., Shionogi & Co., Ltd., Midosuji MTR Building 4F, 3-6-3 Awajimachi, Chuo-ku, Osaka 541-0047, Japan.
Misaki ShimasakiDepartment of Psychiatry and Cognitive-Behavioral Medicine, Nagoya City University Graduate School of Medical Sciences, 1 Kawasumi, Mizuho-cho, Mizuho-ku, Nagoya 467-8601, Japan.
Takuya OkamiDepartment of Psychiatry and Cognitive-Behavioral Medicine, Nagoya City University Graduate School of Medical Sciences, 1 Kawasumi, Mizuho-cho, Mizuho-ku, Nagoya 467-8601, Japan.
Gaku SakaguchiNew Business Promotion Dept., Shionogi & Co., Ltd., 3-1-8 Doshomachi, Chuo-ku, Osaka 541-0045, Japan.
Toshiaki A FurukawaKyoto University Office of Institutional Advancement and Communications, Yoshida Konoecho, Sakyo-ku, Kyoto 606-8501, Japan.
Hiroko MizushimaMIZUSHIMA HIROKO Mental Health Clinic, 3-12-38 Motoazabu, Minato-ku, Tokyo 106-0046, Japan.
Tatsuo AkechiDepartment of Psychiatry and Cognitive-Behavioral Medicine, Nagoya City University Graduate School of Medical Sciences, 1 Kawasumi, Mizuho-cho, Mizuho-ku, Nagoya 467-8601, Japan.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Background: Perinatal depression is a predominant and serious condition that adversely affects prenatal and postpartum women and their children. Prenatal depression is a notable predictor of postpartum depression, highlighting the need for mental health care during pregnancy. Therefore, we developed an innovative smartphone application based on interpersonal psychotherapy (IPT) to improve depressive symptoms in women in the perinatal period (i.e., from pregnancy through the first year postpartum). Here, we present a randomized controlled trial (RCT) protocol to investigate the potential of this intervention for prenatal women. Methods: This study is an 8-week, open-label, parallel-group, stratified block RCT. In total, 350 primiparous women were randomly assigned to the intervention group-combining the smartphone application for mental health care based on IPT and care as usual-and the control group, with only care as usual. The women assigned to the intervention were encouraged to use the application for approximately 5-10 min daily. The primary outcomes included the proportion of participants with moderate-to-high satisfaction (scoring ≥17 on the 8-item Client Satisfaction Questionnaire) and changes in depressive symptoms measured by the Patient Health Questionnaire-9 from baseline to the end of the 8-week intervention. Discussion: To our knowledge, this RCT is the first to investigate the acceptability and efficacy of an IPT-based smartphone application for reducing depressive symptoms in prenatal women. If successful, the findings will contribute to the growing evidence supporting digital mental health interventions during pregnancy, offering a scalable and accessible solution for prenatal mental health care.

Indexed as

DepressionInterpersonal psychotherapyMobile applicationPregnancy

Identifiers

PMID40917811
PMCPMC12412402

What Socratic holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY-NC
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the Socratic graph.