Adam Gepner, MD, clinical adjunct assistant professor, Cardiovascular Medicine, was vice-chair and a co-author on the American Heart Association’s scientific statement, “Harnessing Mobile Health Technology for Secondary Cardiovascular Disease Prevention in Older Adults: A Scientific Statement From the American Heart Association.”

This statement highlights the role mobile health (mHealth), has in managing cardiovascular disease (CVD) in older adults. mHealth, which includes mobile and wireless devices such as cell phones, needs to be, “effective, widely accepted, cost-effective, and time-efficient,” to improve CVD health in aging populations.

Dr. Gepner explains the importance of mHealth research to improve health outcomes, particularly for at-risk groups like older adults.

“We started working on this statement prior to the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, and even then, we recognized that a major challenge is that mHealth technology is evolving at a pace that is much faster than our research. With the swell we have seen in the use of remote care and telehealth over the past year, it is clear that high-quality studies in these areas are even more critical,” he says. 

Banner: Adam Gepner, MD, clinical adjunct assistant professor, Cardiovascular Medicine. Credit: Clint Thayer/Department of Medicine.