A Review of Technology-Assisted Interventions for Diabetes Prevention

Purpose of review: The high prevalence of prediabetes and success of the diabetes prevention program (DPP) has led to increasing efforts to provide readily accessible, cost-effective DPP interventions to the general public. Technology-assisted DPP interventions are of particular interest since they may be easier to widely distribute and sustain as compared to traditional in-person DPP. The purpose of this article is to provide an overview of currently available technology-assisted DPP interventions.

Recent findings: This review focuses on studies that have examined the use of mobile phone text messaging, smartphone/web-based apps, and telehealth programs to help prevent or delay the onset of incident type 2 diabetes. While there is variability in the results of studies focused on technology-assisted DPP and weight loss interventions, there is evidence to suggest that these programs have been associated with clinically meaningful weight loss and can be cost-effective. Patients who are at risk for diabetes can be offered technology-assisted DPP and weight loss interventions to lower their risk of incident diabetes. Further research should determine what specific combination of intervention features would be most successful.