ArticleBMJ health & care informatics2025
Digital health tools in hypertension management in sub-Saharan Africa: a scoping review of barriers and facilitators of adoption into mainstream healthcare.
Article in BMJ health & care informatics, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 6 papers.
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Who cites it
6 citing papers in PubMed.
- Hypertension in sub-Saharan Africa: bridging the gaps through implementation research and scientific innovation.European heart journal · 2026Article
- Experience of older adults using smart devices and mHealth apps for proactive health: a descriptive qualitative study based on the technology acceptance model.Frontiers in public health · 2026Article
- Barriers and facilitators to the use of Hypercare APK app in hypertension management: a qualitative inquiry into highly educated participants' experiences in Ilorin, Nigeria.Frontiers in digital health · 2026Article
- Digital health in clinical pharmacy practice: transforming precision medicine and pharmacometrics in Africa.Frontiers in pharmacology · 2026Review
- Development of a collaborative chronic care model for management of cardiometabolic disease in low- and middle-income countries.PloS one · 2026Article
- Wrist-based wearable oscillometric blood pressure monitoring during Ramadan: a comparative study with standard devices.Frontiers in cardiovascular medicine · 2026Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
5 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
objectiveThe increasing burden of hypertension in Africa underscores the need to embrace digital health innovations to improve delivery and access to quality hypertension care. This review aimed at (1) identifying barriers and facilitators to the implementation and uptake of digital health tools and (2) examining the scope and use of digital health tools based on the Practical Reviews in Self-Management Support (PRISMS) taxonomy. MATERIALS AND
methodsWe searched PubMed, CINAHL (Medline) and HINARI from inception to June 2024. The Joanna Briggs Institute (Population, Concept, and Context (PCC)) framework guided the formulation of research questions, and the PRISMS taxonomy was used to analyse the functions of digital tools.
resultsSixteen studies (k=16) across three African regions were included. Common digital health tools were mobile Health (mHealth) or electronic Health applications and short message service (SMS)-based interventions. Supported self-management functions included medication adherence (k=10), lifestyle counselling (k=12) and home blood pressure monitoring (k=9). Implementation strategies included prior training (k=10), continuous digital support (k=10) and provision of resources including BP devices and data credit (k=11). Targeted users were healthcare workers (k=8), patients (k=11) or both (k=3). Barriers included limited digital literacy, poor communication among healthcare workers, privacy concerns and weak internet infrastructure. Facilitators included competency-based training, contextual adaptations, continuous technical support and enhanced user experience through effective feedback systems between users.
conclusionDigital health tools, particularly mHealth apps and SMS, support key hypertension self-management tasks in African settings. Addressing technological and contextual barriers while reinforcing training and support systems is critical to successful implementation and scale-up.
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