BACKGROUND Mental disorders are a major public health problem leading to premature mortality, homelessness, addiction problems, poor physical health, and suicide. The prevalence of mental disorders in Arab countries, is high. The proliferation and ubiquity of smartphones and their apps in the Arab world may be the long-awaited for digital therapeutic for mental health disorders. However, the evidence about the availability and characteristics of mental health apps available to Arabic speakers remains poor. OBJECTIVE To conduct a systematic assessment of the features of depression and anxiety mobile apps available for Arabic speakers. METHODS A critical review of all the currently available depression and anxiety apps, available free of charge to Arabic speakers. The apps are evaluated using the Mobile App Rating Scale (MARS). Further, a categorization of apps' main functions, inspired by the mhGAP guidelines, is developed to classify the apps based on their main functions. RESULTS A total of 23 apps are identified with far more apps available on the Google Play Store (n = 21) versus only two apps on the iOS App Store. The majority of the apps (n = 16) provide general information about either anxiety, depression, or both. Six apps are of spiritual nature mainly referring to the Islamic faith and the Holy Quran, with one app referring to the Christian faith. Another five apps provide advice on alternative treatments, mainly concerning herbal medicine recipes. Only two apps provided utilities for users, specifically about medication reminders. CONCLUSIONS Mental health digi-threaputics have huge potentials to transform mental health care delivery. However, more empirical studies are needed to assure their quality and efficacy. The results of this study clearly highlight the current gaps to address the needs of Arabic speakers; only 23 apps were identified in this study, mostly with low app quality scores. There is a need to involve expert healthcare professionals in the development of mental health apps and for healthcare providers to empower patients through discussing apps that are useful and discern them from those that can potentially cause harm.

中文翻译：

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精神数字疗法的状态：阿拉伯语使用者可使用的抑郁和焦虑应用程序的系统评估。

背景技术精神障碍是导致过早死亡，无家可归，成瘾问题，身体健康不良和自杀的主要公共健康问题。阿拉伯国家的精神疾病患病率很高。智能手机及其应用程序在阿拉伯世界的普及和普及可能是人们期待已久的精神疾病数字治疗方法。但是，关于阿拉伯语使用者可用的心理健康应用程序的可用性和特点的证据仍然很少。目的对阿拉伯语使用者可用的抑郁和焦虑移动应用程序的功能进行系统评估。方法对所有目前可用的抑郁症和焦虑症应用程序进行严格审查，阿拉伯语使用者可以免费使用。使用“移动应用程序等级量表”（MARS）对应用程序进行评估。进一步，根据mhGAP指南，对应用程序的主要功能进行了分类，以根据应用程序的主要功能对应用程序进行分类。结果总共确定了23个应用程序，其中Google Play商店中可用的应用程序数量更多（n = 21），而iOS App Store中只有两个应用程序。大多数应用程序（n = 16）提供有关焦虑，抑郁或两者的一般信息。六种应用具有精神性质，主要是指伊斯兰信仰和古兰经，一种应用是基督教信仰。另外五个应用程序提供有关替代疗法的建议，主要涉及草药食谱。只有两个应用程序为用户提供了实用程序，特别是有关药物提醒的实用程序。结论心理健康数字疗法具有巨大的潜力，可以改变精神保健的提供方式。然而，需要更多的经验研究以确保其质量和功效。这项研究的结果清楚地表明了当前在满足讲阿拉伯语者需求方面的差距；在这项研究中，仅识别出23个应用程序，其中大多数应用程序质量得分较低。有必要让专业的医疗保健专业人员参与心理健康应用程序的开发，并要求医疗保健提供者通过讨论有用的应用程序并使患者与可能造成伤害的应用程序区分开来，赋予患者权力。