SynthesisInternational journal of environmental research and public health2014
Mobile phone-based mHealth approaches for public health surveillance in sub-Saharan Africa: a systematic review.
Synthesis in International journal of environmental research and public health, 2014. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 79 papers, 4 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
79 citing papers in PubMed, 4 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.
- Using mHealth Technologies for Case Finding in Tuberculosis and Other Infectious Diseases in Africa: Systematic Review.JMIR mHealth and uHealth · 2024Pooled it
- Web-Based Apps for Responding to Acute Infectious Disease Outbreaks in the Community: Systematic Review.JMIR public health and surveillance · 2021Pooled it
- The Comparative Effectiveness of Mobile Phone Interventions in Improving Health Outcomes: Meta-Analytic Review.JMIR mHealth and uHealth · 2019Pooled it
- Visual analogue scale (VAS) measurement of antiretroviral adherence in people living with HIV (PLWH): a meta-analysis.Journal of behavioral medicine · 2016Pooled it
- Peer Leaders and Phone Prompts: Implications in the Practice of Breast Care among College StudentsAsian Pacific journal of cancer prevention : APJCP · 2018Trial
- Experiences in running a complex electronic data capture system using mobile phones in a large-scale population trial in southern Nepal.Global health action · 2017Trial
- Effectiveness of a Mobile Short-Message-Service-Based Disease Outbreak Alert System in Kenya.Emerging infectious diseases · 2016Trial
- Community-Centric Malaria Prevention in Sub-Saharan Africa: A Narrative Review of Pathways to Elimination and Global Health Impact.Health science reports · 2026Article
- Artificial intelligence for climate-health early warning systems in the Horn of Africa: opportunities, challenges, and a roadmap for action.Globalization and health · 2026Article
- Modernizing public health surveillance for global health security leveraging AI.Lancet regional health. Americas · 2026Review
- A Community-Based Usability Study of an AI-Enabled Oral Cancer Screening App Operated by Village Health Volunteers: Mixed Methods Study.JMIR mHealth and uHealth · 2026Article
- Challenges and potential opportunities for improving One Health surveillance in low-resource settings: Insights from rabies surveillance in Malawi.One health outlook · 2026Article
- From fragmented to integrated surveillance in LMICs: digital pathways for outbreak detection and vaccine intelligence.Frontiers in public health · 2026Review
- Scoping review of artificial intelligence via mobile technology and social media for health in Africa.Nature communications · 2025Article
- Point of care devices in primary care setting in india: A scoping review.BMC primary care · 2025Article
- Shesha, a WhatsApp Chatbot for Linking Household Contacts to Tuberculosis Treatment or Preventive Therapy in South Africa: Design and Development.JMIR formative research · 2025Article
- Artificial Intelligence in Medication Management for Older Adults in Low- and Middle-Income Countries: A Narrative Review.Aging medicine (Milton (N.S.W)) · 2025Review
- Fast-tracking international health regulations in Sierra Leone through implementation of the third edition of Integrated Disease Surveillance and Response (IDSR) guidelines during COVID-19 pandemic, 2019-2021: a mixed methods study.BMC health services research · 2025Article
- Trends in mobile phone ownership, frequency of number changes, and implications for public health service delivery in Uganda, 2010-2020.Scientific reports · 2025Article
- Remote Assisted Home Dressing vs. Outpatient Medication of Central Venous Catheter (Peripherally Inserted Central Venous Catheter): Clinical Trial A.R.C.O. (Remote Assistance Oncology Caregiver).Nursing reports (Pavia, Italy) · 2024Article
19 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
5 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
Whereas mobile phone-based surveillance has the potential to provide real-time validated data for disease clustering and prompt respond and investigation, little evidence is available on current practice in sub-Sahara Africa. The objective of this review was to examine mobile phone-based mHealth interventions for Public Health surveillance in the region. We conducted electronic search in MEDLINE, EMBASE, IEE Xplore, African Index Medicus (AIM), BioMed Central, PubMed Central (PMC), the Public Library of Science (PLoS) and IRIS for publications used in the review. In all, a total of nine studies were included which focused on infectious disease surveillance of malaria (n = 3), tuberculosis (n = 1) and influenza-like illnesses (n = 1) as well as on non-infectious disease surveillance of child malnutrition (n = 2), maternal health (n = 1) and routine surveillance of various diseases and symptoms (n = 1). Our review revealed that mobile phone-based surveillance projects in the sub-Saharan African countries are on small scale, fragmented and not well documented. We conclude by advocating for a strong drive for more research in the applied field as well as a better reporting of lessons learned in order to create an epistemic community to help build a more evidence-based field of practice in mHealth surveillance in the region.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.