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The Role of Text Messaging in Cardiovascular Risk Factor Optimization

  • Ischemic Heart Disease (D Mukherjee, Section Editor)
  • Published:
Current Cardiology Reports Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Purpose of Review

Many cases of CVD may be avoidable through lowering behavioural risk factors such as smoking and physical inactivity. Mobile health (mHealth) provides a novel opportunity to deliver cardiovascular prevention programs in a format that is potentially scalable. Here, we provide an overview of text messaging-based mHealth interventions in cardiovascular prevention.

Recent Findings

Text messaging-based interventions appear effective on a range of behavioural risk factors and can effect change on multiple risk factors—e.g. smoking, weight, blood pressure—simultaneously. For many texting studies, there are challenges in interpretation as many texting interventions are part of larger complex interventions making it difficult to determine the benefits of the separate components.

Summary

Whilst there is evidence for text messaging improving cardiovascular risk factor levels in the short-term, future studies are needed to examine the durability of these effects and whether they can be translated to improvements in clinical care and outcomes.

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Acknowledgements

Clara K. Chow is supported by National Health and Medical Research Council Career Development Award (APP1033478) co-funded by the National Heart Foundation of Australia and Sydney Medical Foundation Chapmen Fellowship. She reports speaker fees paid to her institution from Astra Zeneca, Sanofi, Pfizer and Amgen. She is also an author of some of the literature that has been referenced in this paper.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW, Australia

    Harry Klimis, Mohammad Ehsan Khan & Clara K. Chow

  2. Department of Cardiology, Westmead Hospital, PO Box 533, Wentworthville, NSW, Australia, 2145

    Harry Klimis, Mohammad Ehsan Khan & Clara K. Chow

  3. The George Institute for Global Health, Sydney, NSW, Australia

    Harry Klimis, Cindy Kok & Clara K. Chow

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  1. Harry Klimis
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Correspondence to Harry Klimis.

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Harry Klimis, Mohammad Ehsan Khan and Cindy Kok declare that they have no conflict of interest.

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This article does not contain any studies with human or animal subjects performed by any of the authors.

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This article is part of the Topical Collection on Ischemic Heart Disease

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Klimis, H., Khan, M.E., Kok, C. et al. The Role of Text Messaging in Cardiovascular Risk Factor Optimization. Curr Cardiol Rep 19, 4 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11886-017-0811-8

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