Telecare is a valuable tool for hypertension management, a systematic review and meta-analysis

There is an increasing interest for using telecare(TC) in the management of hypertension. A systematic review to the use of blood pressure (BP) measurement in TC has been performed (Medline/PubMed, Embase, and Cochrane Library), selecting randomized clinical trials that compared TC with usual care (UC) for hypertension management (treatment and/or coaching). Nine randomized clinical trials were selected (n=2501, 61.4±0.6 years, 42±2.7% males). Overall there was a significant larger decrease in the TC group than in the UC group for systolic (5.2±1.5 mmHg; P<0.001) and diastolic BP (2.1±0.8 mmHg; P<0.01). When studies were separated for antihypertensive treatment modification during the study (yes or no), systolic BP decrease difference between the TC and UC groups (ΔTC-ΔUC) tended to be significantly lower (5.1±2.9 mmHg lower) with treatment modification compared with nontreatment modification in which the ΔTC-ΔUC was 8.6±2.4 mmHg, P=0.07. TC led to a greater decrease in systolic and diastolic BP than UC. The differences between TC and UC for systolic BP tend to become larger when no treatment modification is applied. TC seems a valuable tool for hypertension management.