The effects of mobile health interventions on lipid profiles among patients with metabolic syndrome and related disorders: A systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials

The current systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials (RCTs) was conducted to summarize the effect of mobile health (m-health) interventions on lipid profiles among patients with metabolic syndrome and related disorders. Cochrane Library, EMBASE, PubMed, and Web of Science databases were searched to indentify the relevant randomized clinical trials published up April 30th, 2018. Two reviewers examined study eligibility, extracted data, and assessed risk of bias of included clinical trials, individually. Heterogeneity was measured using I-square (I2) statistic and Cochran's Q test. Data were pooled the standardized mean difference (SMD) effect size by the random-effect model. 18 trials of 1681 citations were identified to be appropriate for the current meta-analysis. Findings random-effects model indicated that m-health interventions significantly decreased total- (SMD −0.54; 95% CI, −1.05, −0.03) and LDL-cholesterol levels (SMD −0.66; 95% CI, −1.18, -0.15). M-health interventions had no significant effect on triglycerides (SMD −0.14; 95% CI, −0.56, 0.28) and HDL-cholesterol levels (SMD −0.35; 95% CI, −0.81, 0.11). Overall, the current meta-analysis demonstrated that m-health interventions resulted in an improvement in total- and LDL-cholesterol, but did not affect triglycerides and HDL-cholesterol levels.