Adherence to eHealth-Delivered Exercise in Adults with no Specific Health Conditions: A Scoping Review on a Conceptual Challenge

Andrea Fuente-Vidal; Myriam Guerra-Balic; Oriol Roda-Noguera; Javier Jerez-Roig; Joel Montane

doi:10.3390/ijerph191610214

Adherence to eHealth-Delivered Exercise in Adults with no Specific Health Conditions: A Scoping Review on a Conceptual Challenge

Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2022 Aug 17;19(16):10214. doi: 10.3390/ijerph191610214.

Authors

Andrea Fuente-Vidal^{1

2}, Myriam Guerra-Balic¹, Oriol Roda-Noguera³, Javier Jerez-Roig², Joel Montane^{1

4}

Affiliations

¹ Research Group on Health, Physical Activity and Sport (SAFE), Blanquerna School of Psychology, Education and Sport Sciences, Universitat Ramon Llull, 08022 Barcelona, Spain.
² Research Group on Methodology, Methods, Models and Outcomes of Health and Social Sciences (M3O), Faculty of Health Sciences and Welfare, Centre for Health and Social Care Research (CESS), University of Vic-Central University of Catalonia (UVic-UCC), 08500 Vic, Spain.
³ Fundació Naccari-Ravà, 08036 Barcelona, Spain.
⁴ Blanquerna School of Health Science, Universitat Ramon Llull, 08025 Barcelona, Spain.

Abstract

Adherence has emerged as a focal point and critical determinant of success for physical activity interventions. The term is used for both traditional and digital interventions, and for prescribed and nonprescribed activities. Many other terms for adherence are being used interchangeably, as there is no consensus on its precise conceptualization. This scoping review aimed to advance the definition of adherence to eHealth programs, specifically for the adult population with no specific health conditions. A total of 2983 papers, published between 1 January 2016 and 13 March 2022, were retrieved from different databases (including grey literature). Of those, 13 studies met the eligibility criteria and were included for review. The selected studies used a wide array of technologies and consisted mainly of exercise interventions. Most of the reviewed publications contemplated exercise adherence as a percentage of expected dose. Most (8 out of 13) studies neither assessed nor specified an expected use of the involved technology. Results suggest a need for homogeneity in the conceptualization of adherence to physical activity and exercise, including those interventions delivered digitally.

Keywords: adherence; apps; attrition; digital health; eHealth; engagement; exercise; mHealth; physical activity; smartphone; treatment adherence and compliance.

Publication types

Review
Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

Exercise
Publications
Technology
Telemedicine* / methods

Grants and funding

This scoping review was conducted independently by a research team at Ramon Llull University. It was completed with research funds provided by Aristos Campus Mundus projects (ACM2021_02 and ACM2022_25) and Fundació Naccari-Ravà 2022. The authors would also like to acknowledge the support of the university Blanquerna-URL in providing funds for the employment of the principal author.