The role of eHealth and mHealth in tuberculosis and tobacco control: a WHO/ERS consultation

Abstract

@ERSpublications eHealth and mHealth in tuberculosis and tobacco control: WHO/ERS consultation http://ow.ly/Owy38Both tuberculosis (TB) and tobacco consumption are major global public health concerns. About 9 million new cases of TB emerge each year and 1.5 million people die from the disease, despite the fact that TB is eminently curable in the large majority of cases with an affordable course of drugs [1]. Tobacco is the largest preventable cause of death in the world: almost 6 million people die from tobacco use and exposure each year, accounting globally for 6% of all female and 12% of all male deaths [2]. This number is set to increase to 8 million in 2030, or 10% of all deaths projected to occur that year. The burden of tobacco use is greatest in low-and middle-income countries and, unchecked, this trend is likely to increase in coming decades. There is a strong association between smoking and TB [3,4]. Smoking substantially increases the risk of contracting TB and dying from it. Recent studies of risk factors have attributed more than 20% of global TB incidence to smoking [5]. As a result, smoking cessation is one of the interventions that can prevent TB and, among those who already developed the disease, improve its outcomes [6].While the evidence for the association between TB and tobacco provides the scientific basis for joint intervention, the global explosion in information and communication technology (ICT) presents new opportunities for more effective action on both fronts. The pace with which the coverage of internet and mobile telephone networks continues to grow, and with which the performance of electronic devices keeps advancing and diversifying, can only be described as revolutionary. They create new perspectives to reach larger numbers of patients and health care workers even in resource-limited settings in the world. In fact, eHealth and mHealth open up approaches for action which would have been unimaginable a mere decade ago and a groundswell of interest has been observed in recent years to employ novel means to support TB patients [7,8]. eHealth (electronic health) is the cost-effective and secure use of ICTs for health and health-related fields while mHealth, a component of eHealth, involves the provision of health services and information via mobile technologies such as mobile phones and personal digital assistants. eHealth and mHealth are referred to collectively as "digital health". Likewise, a joint initiative between the World Health Organization (WHO) and the International Telecommunications Union, "Be He@lthy Be Mobile" (mHealth4NCD.itu.int) is seeing countries as far apart as Costa Rica, India, Norway, the Philippines, Senegal, Tunisia, the UK and Zambia embrace mHealth solutions to combat tobacco, diabetes, cervical cancer, hypertension and other non-communicable diseases. What makes this initiative unique is that these state-owned programmes use mobile phones to deliver health care at national scale rather than as pilot studies. Through its work it also supports the creation o...

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