There is potential for mHealth tools to better facilitate adherence to chronic disease management , but the evidence supporting its current effectiveness is mixed .
BACKGROUND Adherence to chronic disease management is critical to achieving improved health outcomes , quality of life , and cost-effective health care .
As the burden of chronic diseases continues to grow globally , so does the impact of non-adherence .
Mobile technologies are increasingly being used in health care and public health practice ( mHealth ) for patient communication , monitoring , and education , and to facilitate adherence to chronic diseases management .
OBJECTIVE We conducted a systematic review of the literature to evaluate the effectiveness of mHealth in supporting the adherence of patients to chronic diseases management ( " mAdherence " ) , and the usability , feasibility , and acceptability of mAdherence tools and platforms in chronic disease management among patients and health care providers .
Effect of mobile phone reminders on follow-up medical care of children exposed to or infected with HIV in Cameroon (MORE CARE): a multicentre, single-blind, factorial, randomised controlled trial.
BACKGROUND Missed scheduled HIV appointments lead to increased mortality , resistance to antiretroviral therapy , and suboptimum virological response . We aim ed to assess whether reminders sent to carers by text message , mobile phone call , or concomitant text message and mobile phone call increase attendance at medical appointments for HIV care in a population of children infected with or exposed to HIV in Cameroon . We also aim ed to ascertain the most cost-effective method of mobile-phone-based reminder . METHODS MORE CARE was a multicentre , single-blind , factorial , r and omised controlled trial in urban , semi-urban , and rural setting s in Cameroon . Carers of children who were infected with or had been exposed to HIV were r and omly assigned electronically in blocks of four and allocated ( 1:1:1:1 ) sequentially to receive a text message and a call , a text message only , a call only , or no reminder ( control ) . Investigators were masked to group assignment . Text messages were sent and calls made 2 or 3 days before a scheduled follow-up appointment . The primary outcomes were efficacy ( the proportion of patients attending a previously scheduled appointment ) and efficiency ( attendance/ [ measures of staff working time × cost of the reminders ] ) , as a measure of cost-effectiveness . The primary analysis was by intention to treat . This study is registered with the Pan African Clinical Trials Register , number PACTR201304000528276 . FINDINGS The study took place between Jan 28 and May 24 , 2013 . We r and omly assigned 242 adult-child ( carer-patient ) pairs into four groups : text message plus call ( n=61 ) , call ( n=60 ) , text message ( n=60 ) , and control ( n=61 ) . 54 participants ( 89 % ) in the text message plus call group , 51 ( 85 % ) in the call group , 45 ( 75 % ) in the text message group , and 31 ( 51 % ) in the control group attended their scheduled appointment . Compared with control , the odds ratios for improvement in the primary efficacy outcome were 7·5 ( 95 % CI 2·9 - 19·0 ; p<0·0001 ) for text message plus call , 5·5 ( 2·3 - 13·1 ; p=0·0002 ) for call , and 2·9 ( 1·3 - 6·3 ; p=0·012 ) for text message . No significant differences were seen in comparisons of the three intervention groups with each other , and there was no synergism between text messages and calls . For the primary efficiency outcome , the mean difference for text message versus text message plus call was 1·5 ( 95 % CI 0·7 to 2·4 ; p=0·002 ) , for call versus text message plus call was 1·2 ( 0·7 to 1·6 ; p<0·0001 ) , and for call versus text message was 0·4 ( -1·3 to 0·6 ; p=0·47 ) . INTERPRETATION Mobile-phone-based reminders of scheduled HIV appointments for carers of paediatric patients in low-re source setting s can increase attendance . The most effective method of reminder was text message plus phone call , but text messaging alone was the most efficient ( ie , cost-effective ) method . FUNDING No external funding
There is potential for mHealth tools to better facilitate adherence to chronic disease management , but the evidence supporting its current effectiveness is mixed .
BACKGROUND Adherence to chronic disease management is critical to achieving improved health outcomes , quality of life , and cost-effective health care .
As the burden of chronic diseases continues to grow globally , so does the impact of non-adherence .
Mobile technologies are increasingly being used in health care and public health practice ( mHealth ) for patient communication , monitoring , and education , and to facilitate adherence to chronic diseases management .
OBJECTIVE We conducted a systematic review of the literature to evaluate the effectiveness of mHealth in supporting the adherence of patients to chronic diseases management ( " mAdherence " ) , and the usability , feasibility , and acceptability of mAdherence tools and platforms in chronic disease management among patients and health care providers .