Digital Asthma Self-Management Interventions

Apps, software specifically designed for and available on smart phones and tablets, have been enthusiastically adopted by users of smart phones and tablets and proposed as a delivery mechanism for self-management of Asthma intervention

Digital health technology is rapidly expanding for asthma management. Many people with asthma tolerate symptoms and lifestyle limitations unnecessarily by not utilizing the proven therapies and lack of knowledge on their medication usage. Better support, training & education for self-management are known to improve asthma control, and increasingly the Internet and other digital media are being used to deliver that support.

Digital health is changing Asthma Care in below ways:

  • Detect impairment in medication usage, create new opportunities for care teams to intervene
  • Timely analysis by clinical care, strengthening patient-clinician communication
  • Increase medication adherence and self-management

There are dozens of promising Apps for Asthma self management, however there are number of barriers affecting the successful implementation and uptake of these apps in daily usage, like complexity of the apps, cost, accuracy, content and quality & smart phone literacy.

Mobile asthma management apps may include information about asthma, symptom diaries, medication reminders, and early warning software for asthma triggers. Several Asthma apps provide visual output that can be shared with a health care provider either during a clinic visit or sent in remotely when a change in the asthma action plan is indicated.

On further research, we found that there is no app that helps patient to know more about their inhaled medication and correct usage of Inhaler devices in real time, so there was a need to built such an app that will help patients to learn about their inhaler treatment and engage them in self managing correct inhaler technique.

Use-inhalers.com came up with an innovative App – How to use Inhalers especially designed for Asthma patients to watch, learn and practice step by step correct inhaler technique to ensure effective medication intake and better drug adherence.