Digital Therapeutics Help Lower Blood Pressure in Patients With Hypertension

Blood pressure improvement among patients with high blood pressure, body mass index (BMI), and salt intake was better with an added digital therapeutics intervention compared with lifestyle modification guidance alone. Researchers reported their findings in Hypertension Research.

“Lifestyle modifications, including body weight reduction and salt restriction, help reduce blood pressure,” wrote researchers from Jichi Medical University School of Medicine and CureApp Inc. in Japan. “This study investigated the effects of BMI and salt intake on home blood pressure reductions in unmedicated patients with hypertension receiving guideline-based lifestyle modification from doctors (control group) or with the addition of a digital therapeutics intervention.”

The analysis included 302 participants from the HERB Digital Hypertension 1 (HERB-DH1) pivotal trial. The digital therapeutics group included 156 patients, and the control group included 146 patients.

“The digital therapeutic intervention reduced home blood pressure the most in unmedicated patients with hypertension with high baseline BMI and salt intake score,” researchers reported. “Those with improvements in both BMI and salt intake during the digital therapeutics intervention achieved the greatest reduction in home blood pressure vs control.”

Specifically, patients with baseline BMI ≥ 25 kg/m² and higher salt intake had a 5.1 mmHg greater reduction in morning home systolic blood pressure over 12 weeks in the digital therapeutic group compared with the control group, according to the study. Meanwhile, patients in the digital therapeutics group who reduced their BMI and salt intake over the 12 weeks had a 7.2 mmHg greater decrease in morning home systolic blood pressure compared with the control group.

Reference:
Kario K, Tomitani N, Harada N, et al. Home blood pressure-lowering effect of digital therapeutics in hypertension: impact of body weight and salt intake. Hypertens Res. Published online March 10, 2023. doi:10.1038/s41440-023-01245-7