Author, year (trial) | Sample size Duration | Age (years)* Male (%) | Intervention versus control | Participant characteristics | Setting, country | Primary outcome | Secondary outcome |
Arora et al, 2014 (TExT-MED)27 | 128 6 months | 50.7±10.2 36 | Text messages versus no text message | Patients with poorly controlled diabetes (HbA1c>8%) | Emergency department, LA County Hospital, University of Southern California, USA | Change in HbA1c | Medication adherence, self-efficacy, performance of self-care tasks, QoL, diabetes-specific knowledge, ED use and patient satisfaction. |
Bobrow et al, 2016 (StAR)†15 42 | 1372 12 months | 54.3±11.5 28 | Usual care versus informational SMS versus interactive SMS | Patients treated for high BP | Single primary care centre in Cape Town, South Africa | Change in mean SBP from baseline to 12 months | Proportion of BP<140/90, medication adherence by PDC and self-report, QoL (EQ5D), clinic attendance and retention, satisfaction with clinic services and care, hospital admissions and basic hypertension knowledge |
Chow et al, 2015 (TEXT ME)†24 41 | 710 6 months | 57.9±9.1 81.5 | Usual care versus text messaging+usual care | Patients with documented CHD | A large metropolitan tertiary referral public hospital in Sydney, Australia | Change in plasma LDL cholesterol at 6 months | Change in SBP, BMI, WC, total cholesterol, HR, smoking status, QoL (SF-12), medication adherence, physical activity, proportion achieving modifiable risk factors, PHQ-9 and nutritional status |
Islam et al, 2015 (MPID)†28 43 | 236 6 months | 48.1±9.7 45.8 | Routine care versus SMS+routine care | Patients with type 2 diabetes on oral therapy | Tertiary hospital outpatient department, Dhaka, Bangladesh | Mean changes in HbA1c at 6 months | Medication adherence, QoL (EQ5D), physical activity, PHQ-9, BP, WC, BMI and diet |
Kiselev et al, 201216 | 199 12 months | 50±11 55 | Active ambulatory care management supported by SMS versus traditional ambulatory care management | Patients with arterial hypertension | Ambulatory department of the Saratov Research Institute of Cardiology, Saratov, Russia. | BP levels | BMI and smoking rates |
Maddison et al, 2015 (HEART)†26 31 | 171 6 months | 60.2±9.3 81 | Mobile phone text messages and internet intervention plus usual care, or usual care alone | Adults with a diagnosis of IHD, able to perform exercise and who had access to the internet. | Two metropolitan hospitals in Auckland, New Zealand | Change in maximal oxygen uptake at 6 months | Physical activity (IPAQ), SBP, weight, waist:hip ratio, self-efficacy, QoL (SF-36 and EQ5D) and cost-effectiveness |
Pfaeffli Dale et al, 2015 (Text4Heart)†25 44 | 123 6 months | 59.5±11.1 81.3 | Centre-based CR (usual care) versus text messages and a supporting website+usual care | Adults diagnosed with CHD | Two large metropolitan hospitals in Auckland, NZ | Proportion of participants adhering to healthy behaviours at 6 months | BP, lipid profile, weight, BMI, waist:hip ratio, self-efficacy, depression and medication adherence |
Ramachandran et al, 201323 | 537 24 months | 46±4.7 100 | Mobile phone messaging intervention or standard care | Working Indian men aged 35–55 years with BMI of ≥23 kg/m2 with no diabetes or major illness | Public and private-sector industrial units in southeast India | Incidence of type 2 diabetes | BMI, WC, SBP, DBP, lipid profile, total dietary energy intake and physical activity score |
Wald et al, 201429 | 303 6 months | 60 (54–68) 53.8 | Text group versus no text group | Patients taking BP and/or lipid-lowering medications | 7 Primary care practices in London, UK | Medication use at 6 months, exceeding 80% of the prescribed regimen | Proportion of patients continuing their medications, taking >80% of their prescribed regimen, BP, total cholesterol and LDL |
*Age in years (mean±SD/median (IQR)).
†Studies included in the individual patient data meta-analysis.
BMI, body mass index; BP, blood pressure; CHD, coronary heart disease; CR, cardiac rehabilitation; CVD, cardiovascular disease; DBP, diastolic blood pressure; ED, emergency department; EQ5D, EuroQol Group 5-Dimension Self-report Questionnaire; HbA1c, haemoglobin A1c; IHD, ischaemic heart disease; LDL, low-density lipoprotein; PDC, proportion of days of medication covered; PHQ-9, Patient Health Questionnaire 9; QoL, quality of life; SBP, systolic blood pressure; SF-12, short form 12; SF-36, short form 36; SMS, short message service; StAR, SMS Text-message adherence suppoRt tria; TEXT ME, Effect of Lifestyle-Focused text messaging on risk factor modification in patients with coronary heart disease: a randomized clinical trial; TExT-MED, Trial to examine text message-based mHealth in emergency department patients with diabetes; WC, waist circumference.