Abstract P400: Effectiveness and Acceptability of Dietary Telehealth Interventions Targeting Cardiovascular Disease Risk Factors: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

Introduction: Dietary telehealth interventions were recommended for cardiovascular disease (CVD) management during the COVID-19 pandemic. Objective: To examine (1) effectiveness of dietary telehealth interventions in improving diet-related CVD risk factors and (2) their acceptability among CVD patients. Methods: We conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials (RCTs) that examined the effect of dietary telehealth interventions on CVD risk factors (Table 1) among adult CVD patients. Two investigators searched PubMed, Cochrane Library, Web of Science, and ClinicalTrials.gov databases based on predetermined search terms, and included English language RCTs published before July 2022. Pooled data for each CVD outcome were assessed using a random effects model, and mean difference (MD), standardized MD (SMD), or risk ratio (RR) were calculated using R software. Results: A total of 15 RCTs with 3,751 participants were included in the analysis. Participants had a mean age (SD) of 60.9 (3.6) years, 23.3% were women. Most RCTs were conducted in the US (33.3%) and in urban areas (93.3%). Interventions involved either phone calls, apps, texts, or websites, and follow-up durations ranged from 4 to 56 weeks. Of the 15 studies, 4 were of high quality, 10 were of moderate quality, and only 1 was of low quality. Pooled estimates showed systolic blood pressure (MD: -3.01 [95% CI: -4.75 to -1.28]) and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (SMD: -0.11 [95% CI: -0.19 to -0.03]) to significantly favor dietary telehealth interventions compared to usual care among CVD patients. There was no significant difference between the acceptability of dietary telehealth interventions and usual care. Significant I 2 indicated moderate to considerable heterogeneity. Conclusions: Dietary telehealth interventions show promise in addressing CVD risk factors.