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 .
Trial to examine text message-based mHealth in emergency department patients with diabetes (TExT-MED): a randomized controlled trial.
STUDY OBJECTIVE Increasingly , low-income inner-city patients with diabetes utilize emergency departments ( EDs ) for acute and chronic care . We seek to determine whether a scalable , low-cost , unidirectional , text message-based mobile health intervention ( TExT-MED ) improves clinical outcomes , increases healthy behaviors , and decreases ED utilization in a safety net population . METHODS We conducted an r and omized controlled trial of 128 adult patients with poorly controlled diabetes ( glycosylated hemoglobin [ Hb A1C ] level ≥8 % ) in an urban , public ED .  The TExT-MED group received 2 daily text messages for 6 months in English or Spanish . The primary outcome was change in Hb A1C level . Secondary outcomes included changes in medication adherence , self-efficacy , performance of self-care tasks , quality of life , diabetes-specific knowledge , ED utilization , and patient satisfaction . RESULTS Hb A1C level decreased by 1.05 % in the TExT-MED group compared with 0.60 % in the controls ( Δ0.45 ; 95 % confidence interval [ CI ] -0.27 to 1.17 ) at 6 months . Secondary outcomes favored the TExT-MED group , with the most sizable change observed in self-reported medication adherence ( as measured by the Morisky Medication Adherence Scale , an 8-point vali date d scale with higher scores representing better adherence ) , which improved from 4.5 to 5.4 in the TExT-MED group compared with a net decrease of -0.1 in the controls ( Δ1.1 [ 95 % CI 0.1 to 2.1 ] ) . Effects were larger among Spanish speakers for both medication adherence ( 1.1 versus -0.3 ; Δ1.4 ; 95 % CI 0.2 to 2.7 ) and Hb A1C ( -1.2 % versus -0.4 % ) in the TExT-MED group . The proportion of patients who used emergency services trended lower in the TExT-MED group ( 35.9 % versus 51.6 % ; Δ15.7 % ; 95 % CI 9.4 % to 22 % ) . Overall , 93.6 % of respondents enjoyed TExT-MED and 100 % would recommend it to family/friends . CONCLUSION The TExT-MED program did not result in a statistically significant improvement in Hb A1C . However , trends toward improvement in the primary outcome of Hb A1C and other secondary outcomes , including quality of life , were observed , the most pronounced being improved medication adherence . TExT-MED also decreased ED utilization . These findings were magnified in the Spanish-speaking subgroup .  Technologies such as TExT-MED represent highly scalable , low-cost , and widely accessible solutions for safety-net ED population
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 .