mHealth To Promote Monitoring and Self-Regulation Among Caregivers of People With Dementia: A Systematic Review

Dementia caregiving imposes substantial emotional, physical, and financial burdens, underscoring the urgent need for scalable and accessible support interventions. This systematic review evaluates the role of mobile health (mHealth) applications in enhancing caregivers' self-regulation, with a particular focus on the monitoring component, and their impact on caregivers' burden and wellbeing. Twenty-four studies published between 2019 and 2025 were reviewed, analyzing intervention models, the presence and implementation of monitoring strategies, and overall app efficacy. The findings reveal a variety of mHealth approaches, including psychoeducational tools, social and peer support features, and mindfulness-based therapies. Monitoring mechanisms-such as behavior tracking, emotional self-assessments, reflective prompts, and chatbot-based feedback-emerged as pivotal elements for activating the self-regulation process. These tools supported caregivers in recognizing stressors, evaluating caregiving strategies, and making adaptive changes, thereby enhancing emotional resilience and caregiving efficacy. However, persistent challenges such as declining user engagement and variability in digital literacy highlight the need for more adaptive, user-centered designs. This review emphasizes the transformative potential of mHealth monitoring in dementia caregiving and calls for future research to standardize evaluation metrics, personalize interventions, and promote long-term engagement and accessibility for diverse caregiver populations.