Rootes-Murdy K, Glazer KL, Van Wert MJ, Mondimore FM, Zandi PP. (2018). Mobile technology for medication adherence in people with mood disorders: A systematic review. Journal of Affective Disorders. 227: 613-617. doi: 10.1016/j.jad.2017.11.022
Researchers reviewed 9 studies, including 8 observational studies and 1 randomized controlled trial (RCT), evaluating mobile interventions targeting medication adherence in people with mood disorders. Researchers extracted data from process (e.g. retention, usability, acceptance) and clinical (e.g. mood symptoms, medication adherence) outcomes. Mobile interventions were delivered using phone calls (2 studies), text messages (2 studies), surveys (2 studies), and mobile applications (3 studies). All studies evaluated metrics of process outcomes, 6 reported intervention response rates (e.g. completion of surveys, completion of calls, response to text messages) of 87% or more. Five studies evaluated participants’ satisfaction; all participants in these studies reported high levels of satisfaction. Six studies assessed medication adherence and all reported high rates during the study. Most studies did not compare rates of adherence before and after the study. One study found improvements in medication adherence over time, 2 studies found improvements in clinical appointment adherence, and 1 study found higher rates of adherence compared to other studies. Eight studies evaluated mood symptoms over time. All showed improvements in depressive symptoms, 2 showed decreases in anxiety, and 2 showed no change in mania symptoms, although there was not information to indicate if these changes were statistically significant. The one RCT found that text messaging improved medication adherence.