OP4 ENHANCING ASTHMA CONTROL THROUGH DIGITAL HEALTH:AN EVALUATION OF THE CAREAIDE® MOBILE APPLICATION IN A MALAYSIAN OUTPATIENT SETTING

Tooba Malik¹, Siew Chin Ong¹, Baharudin Bin Ibrahim², Hasniza Binti Zaman Huri², Izyan Binti A. Wahab², Kayatri Govindaraju², Jaya Muneswarao³, Irfhan Ali Hyder Ali³
Universiti Sains Malaysia, Penang, Malaysia¹, Universiti Malaya, Kaula Lumpur, Malaysia², Hospital Pulau Pinang, Penang, Malaysia³

Introduction
Asthma requires consistent management to maintain control and prevent exacerbations. Digital tools like CareAide® mobile application have emerged to support self-management, though real-world evidence of effectiveness is limited.

Objectives
To evaluate the effectiveness of CareAide® mobile application in improving asthma control among adult patients.

Methodology
An open-label randomized control trial was conducted at the outpatient asthma clinic of Hospital Pulau Pinang (July 2023-June 2024), involving 168 adult patients. Participants were assigned to either intervention group (n=83), using CareAide®, or control group (n=85), receiving standard care. Asthma control was measured using Asthma Control Questionnaire (ACQ) at baseline, 3 months and 6 months. Repeated measure ANOVA was used to analyze changes in ACQ scores over time and between groups. Spearman correlation was used to check the association between intervention and outcome.

Results
Among 168 patients, 129 completed all ACQ assessments. Baseline scores indicated partially controlled asthma in both groups (intervention:1.73; control:1.51). By 3 months, the intervention group showed greater improvement (1.17 vs 1.48), and by 6 months, approached the well-controlled range (<1.00) with a mean score of 0.996, compared to 1.34 in the control group. Repeated measures ANOVA showed a significant effect of time (p<0.001) and a time-by-intervention interaction (p=0.017), indicating superior asthma control among CareAide® users. A positive Spearman correlation (r=0.180, p=0.042) supported the association between application use and improved outcomes.

Conclusions
CareAide® significantly improved asthma control compared to standard care. These findings support the integration of digital health solutions into routine asthma management.