Effectiveness of Telemonitoring for Respiratory and Systemic Symptoms of Asthma and COPD: adding an educational component might improve results

Clinical Research Results Abstract Research Idea Abstract Service Development & Evaluation Abstract Introduction: Asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary diseases (COPD) are highly prevalent chronic lung diseases that require ongoing self-management, which is often suboptimal. Therefore, telemonitoring has been used to help patients measure their symptoms, share data with healthcare providers and receive education and feedback to improve disease management. Method: We conducted a narrative review of recent evidence comparing the effectiveness of telemonitoring for symptoms (respiratory and systemic) to care as usual, for both asthma and COPD. The disease-related outcomes of interest were exacerbations, hospitalizations, health-related quality of life and disease-related limitations in daily life. The literature regarding implementation and feasibility was also assessed.Results: Of the thirteen identified papers, eleven focused on COPD and two focused on asthma. The asthma papers showed improvement in adherence, quality of life and asthma control. Eight COPD papers showed a positive outcome on at least one outcome measure. All papers with a positive outcome included an educational component, while only one of the six interventions without positive outcomes included an educational component. No paper described adverse events. Discussion: Telemonitoring is effective, feasible and safe compared to care as usual for patients with COPD. There was an insufficient number of studies to draw conclusions regarding asthma telemonitoring. Telemonitoring interventions seem more effective if they included an educational component regarding different aspects of self-management. There is a lack of research on the behavioral and process factors related to telemonitoring. Declaration of Interest This study was funded by the University of Groningen, Data Science Center in Health and Leiden University Medical Center References and Clinical Trial Registry Information n/a