JMIR Research Protocols

Chronic pain is a leading cause of disability and requires multidimensional assessment of pain intensity and functioning, yet electronic health records rarely capture these measures systematically. By contrast, surveys collecting patient-reported outcomes can assess pain over multiple dimensions but remain resource-intensive and difficult to scale for continuous population-level monitoring.

Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) affects over 366 million adults and 139 million children worldwide, yet diagnosis remains fundamentally subjective, relying on clinical interviews, behavioral observations, and rating scales that yield inconsistent results across practitioners and settings. Artificial intelligence (AI), machine learning (ML), and deep learning (DL) offer a paradigm shift toward objective, data-driven diagnosis by detecting complex patterns across neuroimaging, electrophysiology, and digital biomarkers that elude conventional assessment. Although AI-based ADHD research has grown exponentially, no comprehensive synthesis examines the full spectrum of data modalities, validation practices, and clinical translation readiness. This gap limits our understanding of which approaches are most promising for real-world implementation.

Despite advances in HIV treatment, many people living with HIV fail to achieve or maintain viral suppression. Individuals who experience interruptions in HIV care, adherence challenges, and viral nonsuppression are often underrepresented in clinic-based cohort studies. Virtual cohort methodologies offer opportunities to recruit, engage, and retain these populations while integrating longitudinal behavioral, biomarker, and digital engagement data needed to characterize dynamic changes in HIV care engagement and viral suppression.

Despite several efforts to expand tobacco cessation services through tobacco cessation centers (TCCs) and quit lines, key operational challenges still persist. Recently, AI-based digital interventions have shown promise globally for smoking cessation; however, they remain underused in tobacco cessation strategy in the Indian context.

Simulation-based learning constitutes a valuable component of medical training, with immersive 3D simulations and physical simulations being commonly used. Immersive 3D simulation training has been proven to enhance procedural skills and their transfer, whereas physical simulators allow for haptic feedback. However, direct comparative evidence between these 2 simulation modalities is scarce and often does not address cognitive, motivational, and perceived learning outcomes, which also have an effect on actual learning outcomes.

Emotional disorders—primarily anxiety and unipolar depressive disorders—are highly prevalent, disabling, and frequently comorbid. Disorder‑specific cognitive behavioral therapy (DS‑CBT) is considered a gold standard treatment, yet it can be inefficient in the context of high comorbidity and service constraints. Transdiagnostic psychotherapies that target shared maintaining mechanisms (eg, emotion dysregulation and neuroticism) have been developed, including the Unified Protocol, transdiagnostic behavior therapy, emotion regulation therapy, and various transdiagnostic internet-delivered cognitive behavioral therapy protocols. Recent meta-analyses suggest that transdiagnostic interventions are effective or likely effective, but a comprehensive comparative evaluation across different transdiagnostic protocols, DS‑CBT, other evidence‑based psychotherapies, and control conditions is lacking.

Upper limb impairment is a common consequence of stroke, affecting independence and quality of life. Virtual reality (VR) interventions, including serious games designed for therapeutic purposes and commercial games developed primarily for entertainment, have been increasingly used for poststroke upper limb rehabilitation. Evidence comparing the effectiveness of these game types on functional outcomes remains unclear.

Alveolar ridge resorption following tooth extraction can compromise subsequent implant placement. Socket preservation techniques aim to minimize dimensional changes and promote favorable bone healing. Chitosan nanoparticles combined with titanium-prepared platelet-rich fibrin represent a biologically active approach to ridge preservation.

Reproducible study findings are those that are shown to be identical or nearly identical when an original study is repeated using similar methods. Findings from many randomized controlled trials (RCTs) in cardiovascular surgery have not been reproduced or are small, statistically fragile, and potentially influenced by funding source. They also demonstrate variable end point selection and protocol adherence, all of which may influence reproducibility of their reported results.

Depression in adolescents is a growing public health concern, with 3.5 million youth in the United States experiencing a depressive episode each year. When symptoms emerge in early adolescence, they can have lasting psychological, physical, and cognitive consequences, highlighting the urgent need for proactive intervention. Insufficient sleep—characterized by short duration, irregular timing, and poor quality—is bidirectionally linked to depression and associated with impaired cognitive performance.

Regular and sustained handwashing is a key preventive measure for reducing the transmission of infectious diseases among school-aged children. Virtual reality (VR) interventions have demonstrated potential to facilitate behavioral change by creating immersive environments in which behavioral and environmental variables can be systematically manipulated. Compared with conventional verbal or video-based instruction, VR-based handwashing education may provide students with more interactive and experiential learning opportunities, and may improve cleaning of commonly missed areas, such as the wrists. However, evidence on school-based VR interventions for handwashing education in Hong Kong remains limited.

Tobacco use remains the leading modifiable risk factor for causing cancer worldwide, particularly among people with HIV. In Laos, 61%‐80% of male people with HIV and 3%‐10% of female people with HIV smoke cigarettes. They currently have no theoretically and empirically based smoking cessation support. Our team developed a scalable and affordable mHealth (mobile health)–based automated treatment program to support Lao and Cambodian smokers to quit smoking. We also pioneered the Ask-Advise-Connect approach to identify patients who smoke and to connect them to treatment.