Mobile phone apps help teenagers adhere to asthma treatments by measuring symptoms.
Asthma treatment
How can asthma mobile apps be useful in the treatment ? Treatment for asthma sometimes involves what is known as a “rescue” inhaler that is used at the time that symptoms, such as shortness of breath, cough, or wheezing, occur. If symptoms persist, then patients are prescribed the “everyday” inhaler.
Asthma mobile apps
In one study, 53 adolescents aged 12-18 years with a diagnosis of asthma and prescribed inhalers were enrolled. Assessment of asthma symptoms and adherence were conducted with daily calls to mobile phones for one month, with the Asthma Control Test (ACT) administered at two study time points : baseline and one month after baseline.
Another study has found that simple, daily SMS text messages asking pediatric asthma patients about their symptoms and providing knowledge about their condition can lead to improved health outcomes. For the study, researchers randomly assigned 30 asthmatic children from a private pediatric pulmonology clinic into three groups–a control group that did not receive any SMS messages; a group that received text messages on alternate days; and a group that received texts every day.
The studies concluded that monitoring asthma symptoms and treatments by using mobile phone calls and texting resulted in increased adherence. Further web-based and mobile feedback symptoms can be easily used for this and other clinical problems. Refining specific asthma mobile apps appears to be a significant part of the future of clinical care.
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