Effectiveness and Usability of a Mobile Application to Assist in the Treatment of Arterial Hypertension

Summary

Systemic arterial hypertension (SAH) is a multifactorial cardiovascular disease that stands out as an important risk factor for the development of other cardiovascular diseases, such as ischemic heart disease and stroke, which are the main causes of death in Brazil and in the world. In this sense, SAH is considered a major public health problem, given its high prevalence. However, despite the evidence of several effective treatments for SAH, in Brazil, it is estimated that 77% of hypertensive patients do not undergo any treatment. Among the possible reasons for this, the low adherence to the proposed treatment (pharmacological and non-pharmacological) and the deficiencies in health care systems in approaching the treatment of chronic diseases, such as SAH. In this context, in order to improve the control and treatment of patients with SAH, the development of innovative methodologies that provide strategies to increase adherence to drug treatment and facilitate changes in lifestyle are necessary. In this sense, the present proposal aims to develop an application for smartphones aimed at the treatment of SAH, with tools aimed at medication adherence, blood pressure monitoring, monitoring and promotion of physical activity and healthy lifestyle habits in hypertensive patients. Therefore, the study will be developed in three phases: Phase 1: application development; Phase 2: testing the effectiveness of the application in a controlled environment; and, Phase 3: usability testing of the application. In phase 2, a randomized controlled clinical trial will be conducted to test the effect of eight weeks of application use on laboratory blood pressure, physical activity level, adherence to medication treatment and general lifestyle. In Phase 3, the app will be available on Apple iTunes and Google Play. After the application is publicized in the media (advertisements on television, newspapers, radio) and in social groups, usability aspects will be evaluated, such as the number of downloads and the grade attributed to user evaluations, according to the sociodemographic characteristics of the user (sex, age, place of residence).

Conditions

• Hypertension

Interventions

BEHAVIORAL

Application Group (GA)

The main focus of the application is to assist in the treatment of patients with SAH. The application will address the components of adherence to medication use, blood pressure monitoring and promotion/monitoring of physical activity. In addition, health education tips will be provided, including guidelines for reducing sodium consumption, adopting an adequate and healthy diet, controlling body weight, moderate alcohol consumption and stress management, in accordance with the recommendations of the main guidelines related to the theme¹ ³. The intervention will last eight weeks.

Sponsors & Collaborators

• Universidade Federal de Santa Catarina

  lead OTHER

Principal Investigators

• ALINE M GERAGE, PHD · UNIVERSIDADE FEDERAL DE SANTA CATARINA (UFSC)

Study Design

Allocation

RANDOMIZED

Purpose

TREATMENT

Masking

SINGLE

Model

PARALLEL

Eligibility

Min Age

18 Years

Sex

ALL

Healthy Volunteers

No

Timeline & Regulatory

Start

2022-10-01

Primary Completion

2023-12-01

Completion

2024-01-01

Countries

• Brazil

Study Locations