Trial reportJMIR mHealth and uHealth2019
Improving Linkage to and Retention in Care in Newly Diagnosed HIV-Positive Patients Using Smartphones in South Africa: Randomized Controlled Trial.
Trial report in JMIR mHealth and uHealth, 2019. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. It is linked to trial NCT02756949 (Do Smartphones Increase Linkage to and Retention in Care in Newly Diagnosed HIV-positive Patients in Johannesburg, South Africa), which is not on this map. Cited by 25 papers, 3 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
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.
Do Smartphones Increase Linkage to and Retention in Care in Newly Diagnosed HIV-positive Patients in Johannesburg, South Africa: A Multisite Randomised Controlled Trial
Who cites it
25 citing papers in PubMed, 3 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.
- A Systematic Review of Linkage-to-Care and Antiretroviral Initiation Implementation Strategies in Low- and Middle-Income Countries Across Sub-Saharan Africa.AIDS and behavior · 2022Pooled it
- Effectiveness of eHealth Interventions for HIV Prevention and Management in Sub-Saharan Africa: Systematic Review and Meta-analyses.AIDS and behavior · 2022Pooled it
- Informational support for depression and quality of life improvements in older patients with cancer: a systematic review and meta-analysis.Supportive care in cancer : official journal of the Multinational Association of Supportive Care in Cancer · 2022Pooled it
- Effect of a Male-Targeted Digital Decision Support Application Aimed at Increasing Linkage to HIV Care Among Men: Findings from the HITS Cluster Randomized Clinical Trial in Rural South Africa.AIDS and behavior · 2025Trial
- A clinician-monitored 'PTSD Coach' intervention: findings from two pilot feasibility and acceptability studies in a resource-constrained setting.European journal of psychotraumatology · 2022Trial
- Patient evaluation of Klick, a technology-enabled, nurse-delivered HIV outpatient pathway.HIV medicine · 2025Article
- Article
- Hepatitis B virus (HBV) screening, linkage and retention-in-care in inclusion health populations: Evaluation of an outreach screening programme in London.The Journal of infection · 2024Article
- Participants' experiences of a counsellor-supported PTSD Coach intervention in a resource-constrained setting.Global mental health (Cambridge, England) · 2024Article
- Assessing the cost and utilization of SMS printers by primary health care facilities: lessons learned from South Africa.Journal of public health in Africa · 2023Article
- Linkage to HIV Care and Early Retention in Care Rates in the Universal Test-and-Treat Era: A Population-based Prospective Study in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa.AIDS and behavior · 2023Observational
- Article
- The evolution of HIV self-testing and the introduction of digital interventions to improve HIV self-testing.Frontiers in reproductive health · 2023Article
- Addressing Health Inequities in Digital Clinical Trials: A Review of Challenges and Solutions From the Field of HIV Research.Epidemiologic reviews · 2022Review
- Adolescent retention in HIV care within differentiated service-delivery models in sub-Saharan Africa.The lancet. HIV · 2022Review
- Implementation of an mHealth App to Promote Engagement During HIV Care and Viral Load Suppression in Johannesburg, South Africa (iThemba Life): Pilot Technical Feasibility and Acceptability Study.JMIR formative research · 2022Article
- Experiences in receiving financial incentives to access HIV care in Johannesburg, South Africa.Southern African journal of HIV medicine · 2022Article
- How mHealth Can Contribute to Improving the Continuum of Care: A Scoping Review Approach to the Case of Human Immunodeficiency Virus in Sub-Saharan Africa.Public health reviews · 2022Article
- Demonstrating the feasibility of digital health to support pediatric patients in South Africa.Epilepsia open · 2021Observational
- Community health worker models in South Africa: a qualitative study on policy implementation of the 2018/19 revised framework.Health policy and planning · 2021Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
11 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundSouth Africa provides free antiretroviral therapy for almost 5 million people living with HIV, but only 71% of the eligible people are on treatment, representing a shortfall in the care cascade, especially among men and youth. Many developing countries have expanded access to smartphones; success in health apps raises the possibility of improving this cascade.
objectiveSmartLink is a health app for Android smartphones providing HIV-related laboratory results, information, support, and appointment reminders to engage and link patients to care. This study aimed to evaluate the ability of SmartLink to improve linkage to care for HIV-positive smartphone owners.
methodsThis study was a multisite randomized controlled trial in Johannesburg. The intervention arm received the app (along with referral to a treatment site) and the control arm received the standard of care (referral alone). Linkage to care was confirmed by an HIV-related blood test reported on the National Health Laboratory Service database between 2 weeks and 8 months after initiation.
resultsA total of 345 participants were recruited into the study; 64.9% (224/345) of the participants were female and 44.1% (152/345) were aged less than 30 years. In addition, 46.7% (161/345) were employed full time, 95.9% (331/345) had at least secondary school education, and 35.9% (124/345) were from Zimbabwe. Linkage to care between 2 weeks and 8 months was 48.6% (88/181) in the intervention arm versus 45.1% (74/164) in the control (P=.52) and increased to 64.1% (116/181) and 61.0% (100/164) (P=.55), respectively, after the initial 8-month period. Moreover, youth aged 18 to 30-years showed a statistically significant 20% increase in linkage to care for the intervention group.
conclusionsYouth aged less than 30 years have been historically difficult to reach with traditional interventions, and the SmartLink app provides a proof of concept that this population reacts to mobile health interventions that engage patients in HIV care.
trial registrationClinicalTrials.gov NCT02756949; https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT02756949 (Archived by WebCite at http://www.webcitation.org/6z1GTJCNW).
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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.