Symptom Monitoring and Management Digital Platforms: Current Capabilities and Future Research and Clinical Practice Directions
摘要
The development of patient-reported outcomes (PRO) to monitor symptom experience has improved management approaches across disease states. PROs, and more recently the capture of PROs electronically (ePRO) has increased the reliability of symptom reporting and clinician understanding of the symptom trajectory. ePRO monitoring and management results in reduced symptom burden, improved quality of life, decreased acute care utilization, and increased treatment adherence. Integrating sensor-based data with ePROs further advances monitoring and, aided by artificial intelligence (AI) methods, can facilitate the prediction of earlier symptom escalation and impending patient deterioration. Digital platforms that improve clinical response to early symptom changes will become the foundation of symptom care, refocusing treatment of acute level escalations to early detection and preventive strategies. Integration of ePROs and other related symptom management digital health tools requires careful design and evaluation to achieve desired clinical outcomes and meet the needs of specific patient populations. These technology-based approaches to symptom management stand to revolutionize care delivery models.