The role of mHealth for improving medication adherence in patients with cardiovascular disease: a systematic review

Abstract

Cardiovascular disease is a leading cause of morbidity and mortality worldwide, and a key barrier to improved outcomes is medication non-adherence. The aim of this study is to review the role of mobile health (mHealth) tools for improving medication adherence in patients with cardiovascular disease. We performed a systematic search for randomized controlled trials that primarily investigated mHealth tools for improving adherence to cardiovascular disease medications in patients with hypertension, coronary artery disease, heart failure, peripheral arterial disease, and stroke. We extracted and reviewed data on the types of mHealth tools used, preferences of patients and healthcare providers, the effect of the mHealth interventions on medication adherence, and the limitations of trials. We identified 10 completed trials matching our selection criteria, mostly with <100 participants, and ranging in duration from 1 to 18 months. mHealth tools included text messages, Bluetooth-enabled electronic pill boxes, online messaging platforms, and interactive voice calls. Patients and healthcare providers generally preferred mHealth to other interventions. All 10 studies reported that mHealth interventions improved medication adherence, though the magnitude of benefit was not consistently large and in one study was not greater than a telehealth comparator. Limitations of trials included small sample sizes, short duration of follow-up, self-reported outcomes, and insufficient assessment of unintended harms and financial implications. Current evidence suggests that mHealth tools can improve medication adherence in patients with cardiovascular diseases. However, high-quality clinical trials of sufficient size and duration are needed to move the field forward and justify use in routine care.

Development of Mobile Health Application for Cardiovascular Disease Prevention

“…Figure 2 shows the services that can be delivered by mHealth. 545 | P a g e www.ijacsa.thesai.org There are several research have been done to investigate the potential use of mHealth for Cardiovascular disease management [3,4,5,7,8,9,10,11,12,13]. The details explanations for those related research are as follows:…”

“… Gandapur et al [5] explain that mHealth can be used to improve medication adherence for cardiovascular disease. The aim of their research is to assess mHealth as a tool to provide better medication obedience for cardiovascular disease patients, especially patients with hypertension, coronary artery disease, heart failure, peripheral arterial disease, and stroke.…”

“…MHealth is also efficient and affordable tool to support and deliver information and education among people since almost individual in this world are having mobile communication, such as: smartphone and tablet [4,5].…”

mActive-Smoke: A Prospective Observational Study Using Mobile Health Tools to Assess the Association of Physical Activity With Smoking Urges (Preprint)

“…Previous studies have suggested that mobile phone-based approaches are efficacious, user-friendly means for communicating with participants, providing instructions, and modifying behaviors [44]. In addition to their practical utility, mHealth technology may also be leveraged to promote health equity.…”

Medication Adherence using Non-intrusive Wearable Sensors

“…The device also can only record the prescription intake and does not provide any reminder or alert for missing dosage. It is necessary to alert the patients to take the missing doses using device such as CompuMed [5] and mHealth [6].…”