Health apps, wearables and remote patient monitoring in conjunction with mobile data health collection has yet to improve outcomes.

The market for healthcare apps, biosensors and wearables to monitor metrics like weight and blood pressure is big and getting bigger. Each day more than 200 health apps are introduced and the number of healthcare and health and wellness apps has grown to 318,000—more than double the number from just two years ago, says the IQVIA Institute for Human Data Science.

But a new review of the data and results contained in 27 studies over three years that tracked the effectiveness of health apps, wearables and remote patient monitoring shows that so far mobile data health collection has yet to improve outcomes.

There is a big difference between using these sensors to track sleep for self-betterment and using them to make medical decisions

In other words, despite widespread use of health apps and wearables, the jury is still out on whether mobile health tools are preventing patients from getting sick or sicker or getting better faster, say researchers from Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles.

Wearable biosensors that automatically transmit data to a web portal or mobile app for patient self-monitoring or health provider assessment have been touted as a means to reduce healthcare utilization, decrease costs, generate research data and increase physician satisfaction, says Cedars-Sinai director of health services research Dr. Brennan Spiegel.

Cedars-Sinai researchers examined the effects of remote patient monitoring using wearable biosensors from the more than two dozen studies that targeted patients who were overweight or suffering from heart disease, lung disease, chronic pain, stroke or Parkinson’s.

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The devices in the various studies included physical activity trackers, blood pressure monitors, electrocardiograms, electronic weight scales and oxygen saturation monitors, among others. The biosensors were embedded in everything from watches and belts to skin patches and textiles, says Cedars-Sinai.

The Cedars-Sinai researchers found no significant impact on any of the outcomes studied for body mass index, weight, waist circumference, and body fat percentage, systolic and diastolic blood pressure.

It’s unclear if the widespread use of wearables and mobile apps is improving disease prevention or in getting patients better faster. “As of now, we don’t have enough evidence that they consistently change clinical outcomes in a meaningful way,” Spiegel says.

For their analysis Cedars-Sinai researchers looked at studies that on average included 239 patients. The studies ranged in duration from 7 days to 29 months, but averaged 7.8 months. Researchers used computer modeling and a point system to rank the results of each individual survey as being valid with high-quality results or lower-quality results with limited or inclusive results.

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Of the more than two dozen survey results analyzed, only three showed a consistent improvement in patient health and wellness, and even in those cases the improvements were limited. For example one study of 275 patients that wore sensors and used a mobile app to monitor and track blood pressure as a means to prevent or control hypertension showed no improvement except for a small group of male patients over 55.

“There is a big difference between using these sensors to track sleep for self-betterment and using them to make medical decisions,” says Michelle Keller, MPH, a clinical research specialist at the Cedars-Sinai Center for Outcomes Research and Education. “There just is not enough data yet.”

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