The role of patient-oriented mHealth interventions in improving Heart Failure outcomes: a systematic review of the literature

Hellenic J Cardiol. 2023 Nov 3:S1109-9666(23)00199-9. doi: 10.1016/j.hjc.2023.11.001. Online ahead of print.ABSTRACTHeart failure (HF) is a debilitating disease with 26 million patients worldwide. Consistent and complex self-care is required on the part of patients to adequately adhere to medication and to the lifestyle changes the disease necessitates. Mobile health (mHealth) is being increasingly incorporated in patient interventions in HF, as smartphones prove ideal platforms for patient education and self-help assistance. This systematic review aims to summarize and report on all studies that have tested the effect of mHealth on HF patient outcomes. Our search yielded seventeen (17) studies, 11 RCTs and 6 non-randomized prospective studies. In these, patients with the assistance of an mHealth intervention regularly measured their blood pressure and/or body weight, as well as assessed their symptoms. The outcomes were mostly related to hospitalizations, clinical biomarkers, patients' knowledge about HF, quality of life (QoL) and quality of self-care. QoL consistently increased in patients that received mHealth interventions, while study results on all other outcomes were not as ubiquitously positive. The first mHealth interventions in HF were not universally successful in improving patient outcomes but provided valuable insights about patient-oriented app development. Future trials are expected to capitalize on these gains and deploy apps that measurably assist HF patients...
Source: Hellenic Journal of Cardiology - Category: Cardiology Authors: Source Type: research