Evidence map›Paper›PMID 41561771›Full record

SynthesisFrontiers in aging2025

Impact of digital health interventions on quality of life and mental health in older adults with chronic diseases: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

Enliang Hu, Haozhe Wang, Jiayi Yao, Mingyu Liao, Wenjia Chen

Abstract readSystematic Review
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Synthesis in Frontiers in aging, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 5 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
5citing papers in PubMed, 1 pooled it
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from 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.

2 · The registry

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.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

5 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it.

  1. Pooled it
  2. Article
  3. Article
  4. Article
  5. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

5 authors.

Enliang HuDepartment of Physical Training, Institute of Aviation Safety and Security, China Civil Aviation Flight Academy, Chengdu, China.
Haozhe WangSchool of Physical Education, China University of Mining and Technology, Xuzhou, China.
Jiayi YaoSchool of Physical Education, China University of Mining and Technology, Xuzhou, China.
Mingyu LiaoDepartment of Physical Training, Institute of Aviation Safety and Security, China Civil Aviation Flight Academy, Chengdu, China.
Wenjia ChenSchool of Physical Education, China University of Mining and Technology, Xuzhou, China.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Background: Chronic diseases significantly impact the health of older adults globally. While digital health technologies offer new avenues for management, existing evidence remains inconsistent with methodological limitations. Methods: We systematically searched eight databases, including PubMed and Web of Science (from inception to 31 July 2025), for randomized controlled trials (RCTs) involving patients aged 60 and above with chronic conditions. A random-effects model was used to synthesize data to evaluate the impact of digital health interventions on general quality of life (QoL), disease-specific QoL, and mental health. The quality of evidence was assessed using the GRADE system. Results: Fifteen RCTs (n = 3253) were included. The meta-analysis showed that digital health interventions significantly improved general QoL (SMD = 0.54, 95% CI [0.30, 0.78]), disease-specific QoL (SMD = 0.39, 95% CI [0.17, 0.60]), and mental health status (SMD = 0.36, 95% CI [0.22, 0.50]) in older adults with chronic diseases. Although heterogeneity was observed in some outcomes, sensitivity analyses confirmed the robustness of the results. The GRADE assessment indicated that the quality of evidence for mental health improvement was high. Conclusion: Digital health interventions effectively enhance the quality of life and mental health of older adults with chronic diseases, demonstrating clear clinical significance. The evidence supports the integration of digital health technologies into routine care systems, particularly standardized interventions for patients with respiratory and metabolic diseases. Systematic Review Registration: https://www.crd.york.ac.uk/prospero/display_record.php?ID=CRD420251107861, identifier CRD420251107861.

Indexed as

chronic diseasedigital health interventionmental healthmeta-analysisolder adultsquality of liferandomized controlled trial

Identifiers

PMID41561771
PMCPMC12813171

What Socratic holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

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 Socratic graph.