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Predicting perinatal health outcomes using smartphone-based digital phenotyping and machine learning in a prospective Swedish cohort (Mom2B): study protocol
Uppsala University, WoMHeR (Centre for Women’s Mental Health during the Reproductive Lifespan). Uppsala University, Disciplinary Domain of Medicine and Pharmacy, Faculty of Medicine, Department of Medical Sciences, Cervenka: Psychiatry.
Uppsala University, Disciplinary Domain of Medicine and Pharmacy, Faculty of Medicine, Department of Women's and Children's Health, Obstetrics and Reproductive Health Research. Karolinska Inst, Ctr Translat Microbiome Res, Dept Microbiol Tumor & Cell Biol, Stockholm, Sweden..ORCID iD: 0000-0001-9010-8522
Uppsala University, Disciplinary Domain of Medicine and Pharmacy, Faculty of Medicine, Department of Women's and Children's Health, Obstetrics and Reproductive Health Research.ORCID iD: 0000-0001-9664-7973
Uppsala University, Disciplinary Domain of Medicine and Pharmacy, Faculty of Medicine, Department of Women's and Children's Health, Obstetrics and Reproductive Health Research. Uppsala University, WoMHeR (Centre for Women’s Mental Health during the Reproductive Lifespan).
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2022 (English)In: BMJ Open, E-ISSN 2044-6055, Vol. 12, no 4, article id e059033Article in journal (Refereed) Published
Abstract [en]

Introduction: Perinatal complications, such as perinatal depression and preterm birth, are major causes of morbidity and mortality for the mother and the child. Prediction of high risk can allow for early delivery of existing interventions for prevention. This ongoing study aims to use digital phenotyping data from the Mom2B smartphone application to develop models to predict women at high risk for mental and somatic complications.

Methods and analysis: All Swedish-speaking women over 18 years, who are either pregnant or within 3 months postpartum are eligible to participate by downloading the Mom2B smartphone app. We aim to recruit at least 5000 participants with completed outcome measures. Throughout the pregnancy and within the first year postpartum, both active and passive data are collected via the app in an effort to establish a participant's digital phenotype. Active data collection consists of surveys related to participant background information, mental and physical health, lifestyle, and social circumstances, as well as voice recordings. Participants' general smartphone activity, geographical movement patterns, social media activity and cognitive patterns can be estimated through passive data collection from smartphone sensors and activity logs. The outcomes will be measured using surveys, such as the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale, and through linkage to national registers, from where information on registered clinical diagnoses and received care, including prescribed medication, can be obtained. Advanced machine learning and deep learning techniques will be applied to these multimodal data in order to develop accurate algorithms for the prediction of perinatal depression and preterm birth. In this way, earlier intervention may be possible.

Ethics and dissemination: Ethical approval has been obtained from the Swedish Ethical Review Authority (dnr: 2019/01170, with amendments), and the project fully fulfils the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) requirements. All participants provide consent to participate and can withdraw their participation at any time. Results from this project will be disseminated in international peer-reviewed journals and presented in relevant conferences.

Place, publisher, year, edition, pages
BMJ BMJ Publishing Group Ltd, 2022. Vol. 12, no 4, article id e059033
Keywords [en]
depression & mood disorders, mental health, maternal medicine, perinatology, preventive medicine, anxiety disorders
National Category
Gynaecology, Obstetrics and Reproductive Medicine Psychiatry
Identifiers
URN: urn:nbn:se:uu:diva-474320DOI: 10.1136/bmjopen-2021-059033ISI: 000788629100017PubMedID: 35477874OAI: oai:DiVA.org:uu-474320DiVA, id: diva2:1658885
Funder
Swedish Research Council, 2020-01965Swedish Association of Local Authorities and RegionsThe Swedish Brain FoundationRegion UppsalaAvailable from: 2022-05-18 Created: 2022-05-18 Last updated: 2025-04-15Bibliographically approved
In thesis
1. The Space Between: Bridging Emotion and Data in Mental Health Research
Open this publication in new window or tab >>The Space Between: Bridging Emotion and Data in Mental Health Research
2025 (English)Doctoral thesis, comprehensive summary (Other academic)
Abstract [en]

Smartphone apps offer new opportunities to study mental health in real-world settings through a combination of passive sensor data and active self-report. This thesis explores how digital mental health research tools can be designed to collect meaningful, ecologically valid data while respecting user experience, motivation, and autonomy. Across four interrelated studies, I examine two app-based cohort studies targeting perinatal women (Mom2B) and young people (UPIC) in Sweden.

The first study presents the technical and ethical foundations of the Mom2B platform, including its integration of digital phenotyping methods. The second study applies machine learning techniques to self-reported data to assess the potential for early prediction of antenatal depression. The third study investigates user attitudes toward data sharing and task engagement, revealing the nuanced balance between research goals and participant comfort. The fourth study follows a user-centered design and usability testing process in the development of the UPIC app, highlighting how early user involvement can improve design, trust, and engagement.

Together, the findings demonstrate the importance of aligning technological possibilities with thoughtful, user-informed design. The thesis contributes to the growing field of digital mental health research by offering practical and ethical insights into the design and evaluation of emotion- and experience-aware research tools.

Place, publisher, year, edition, pages
Uppsala: Acta Universitatis Upsaliensis, 2025. p. 73
Series
Digital Comprehensive Summaries of Uppsala Dissertations from the Faculty of Medicine, ISSN 1651-6206 ; 2153
Keywords
digital phenotyping, mhealth, user-centered design, perinatal mental health, youth mental health, app-based research, prediction, usability testing.
National Category
Human Computer Interaction Psychology
Research subject
Human-Computer Interaction; Psychology
Identifiers
urn:nbn:se:uu:diva-554749 (URN)978-91-513-2491-3 (ISBN)
Public defence
2025-06-11, H:son Holmdahl, Akademiska sjukhuset, Entrance 100, Uppsala, 12:00 (English)
Opponent
Supervisors
Available from: 2025-05-21 Created: 2025-04-15 Last updated: 2025-05-21

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Bilal, AyeshaFransson, EmmaBränn, EmmaEriksson, AllisonZhong, MengyuGidén, KarinElofsson, UlfAxfors, CathrineSkalkidou, AlkistisPapadopoulos, Fotios

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Bilal, AyeshaFransson, EmmaBränn, EmmaEriksson, AllisonZhong, MengyuGidén, KarinElofsson, UlfAxfors, CathrineSkalkidou, AlkistisPapadopoulos, Fotios
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WoMHeR (Centre for Women’s Mental Health during the Reproductive Lifespan)Cervenka: PsychiatryObstetrics and Reproductive Health ResearchDivision of Visual Information and Interaction
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Gynaecology, Obstetrics and Reproductive MedicinePsychiatry

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