Telemedicine and Digital Medicine in the Clinical Management of Hypertension and Hypertension-Related Cardiovascular Diseases: A Position Paper of the Italian Society of Arterial Hypertension (SIIA).

High blood pressure is the leading cause of death and disability globally and an important treatable risk factor for cardiovascular, cerebrovascular and chronic kidney diseases. Digital technology, including mobile health solutions and digital therapy, is expanding rapidly in clinical medicine and has the potential to improve the quality of care and effectiveness of drug treatment by making medical interventions timely, tailored to hypertensive patients' needs and by improving treatment adherence. Thus, the systematic application of digital technologies could support diagnosis and awareness of hypertension and its complications, ultimately leading to improved BP control at the population level.

An ICT and mobile health integrated approach to optimize patients' education on hypertension and its management by physicians: The Patients Optimal Strategy of Treatment(POST) pilot study.

Introduction: Uncontrolled hypertension is largely attributed to unsatisfactory doctor's engagement in its optimal management and to poor patients' compliance to therapeutic interventions. ICT and mobile Health solutions might improve these conditions, being widely available and providing highly effective communication strategies.

Objective: To evaluate whether ICT and mobile Health tools are able to improve hypertension control by improving doctors' engagement and by increasing patients' education and involvement, and their compliance to lifestyle modification and prescribed drug therapy.

Home blood pressure telemonitoring improves hypertension control in general practice. The TeleBPCare study.

Background: Self blood pressure monitoring at home may improve blood pressure control and patients' compliance with treatment, but its implementation in daily practice faces difficulties. Teletransmission facilities may offer a more efficient approach to long-term home blood pressure monitoring.

Methods: Twelve general practitioners screened 391 consecutive uncontrolled mild-moderate hypertensive patients (80% treated), 329 of whom (58 +/- 11 years, 54% men) were randomized to either usual care on the basis of office blood pressure (group A, n = 113) or to integrated care on the basis of teletransmitted home blood pressure (group B, n = 216).