More than 22 million U.S. adults and 4.5 million children live with asthma. Asthma inflames and narrows airways, affecting how air reaches the lungs. Pediatric asthma care often requires close monitoring outside traditional clinical settings.
This article reviews how remote patient monitoring (RPM) is improving pediatric asthma outcomes, quality of life, and care coordination.
Remote Patient Monitoring for Pediatric Asthma Care
Recurrent wheezing is a common symptom of asthma in younger children. The episodic nature of asthma can make it difficult to manage. Therefore, pediatric asthma care often involves frequent office visits.
When using remote patient monitoring for asthma, patients and caregivers can monitor changes in airflow and track medication usage from home in between appointment. Monitoring is conducted with medical devices such as a remote peak flow meter and a smart inhaler. Once the measurement or the medication is taken, the data is transmitted to the patient’s physician for review.
Remote monitoring has shown improvements in managing chronic conditions in adults, and research points to improvements in pediatric asthma care. A systematic review published in Pediatric Pulmonology looked at 40 different telemonitoring technologies for remote pediatric asthma care.
The following section discusses the review and describes telemonitoring technologies such as wearable sensors, smart inhalers, and peak flow meters which can be used in asthma care outside of clinical settings.
Improving Technology for Pediatric Asthma Care
Researchers found that after 2015 pediatric asthma care technology shifted towards user-friendly mobile apps and web-based systems. Most technologies in the analysis were directed toward school-age children and adolescents, as few telemonitoring systems are designed specifically for preschool-aged children.
The research showed that patients and caregivers are often given limited training and education on how to use telemonitoring technology. This lack of information can impact measurement and treatment adherence. Out of 23 studies only 3 mentioned ongoing technical support despite being crucial for successful adoption. Researchers suggest that to improve RPM technology for pediatric patients it may be beneficial to involve caregiver and pediatric patients in co-designing child—and family-friendly interfaces.
Patient and Healthcare Professional Feedback
Several studies showed that many technologies offer features that promote patient engagement and a better understanding of pediatric asthma care. These features include automatic displays, treatment feedback on asthma control levels and treatment recommendations. Added features can help patients and caregivers but they also help reduce burdens on healthcare resources. Medication adherence tracking and symptom monitoring were mentioned as the most common and impactful features.
Balancing provider accessibility with potential workload burdens remains a challenge. However, several studies explored the use of healthcare provider dashboards for remote patient data monitoring. RPM platforms are increasingly used for care coordination, prevention, and timely intervention.
RPM platforms and dashboards facilitate and improve direct communication between caregivers and their healthcare team. Using digital technology for pediatric asthma care allows healthcare teams to determine when patients can be managed remotely or if an in-person visit is needed.
Understanding Pediatric Asthma Care and Remote Patient Monitoring
Most of the 40 studies demonstrated the positive impacts of telemonitoring in pediatric asthma care and clinical outcomes like healthcare utilization and quality of life. This review highlights key trends, challenges, and opportunities in developing practical, user-friendly, and clinically robust solutions for pediatric asthma management. Addressing identified gaps, particularly for the preschool population and training on devices, could drive more meaningful understanding, use of devices, and engagement in RPM for asthma care management.
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