Health Promotion and Disease Prevention through Digital Health Initiative: A Scoping Review

Abstract

Digital health technologies, initially developed for digitizing medical records, have evolved into essential components of healthcare due to their accessibility at any time and from any location. By 2040, global healthcare spending is projected to reach US$25 trillion, driven by digital health and IoT. This scoping review aims to connect existing digital health technologies to the public health perspective, including health promotion and disease prevention concepts, their prevalence, usage effectiveness, and challenges faced by youth and elderly populations. Following the Arksey and O’Malley (2005) framework and adhering to the PRISMAScR guidelines, a comprehensive search was conducted across databases such as Google Scholar, PubMed, and ScienceDirect, using keywords related to digital health, health promotion, and prevention. An initial total of 415 articles were identified, with 11 qualifying based on the inclusion criteria. The studies focused on mHealth, telehealth, wearables, and AI tools, primarily targeting youth and elderly populations. Digital health tools like mHealth apps, telehealth, wearables, and AI technologies effectively promote health behaviors and manage chronic diseases among adults and older adults. Programs such as Lark have demonstrated significant weight loss in the elderly, while social media and community-driven interventions prove effective for younger populations. However, adoption faces barriers such as digital literacy gaps, privacy concerns, and limited access, especially for the elderly. Digital health technologies are valuable tools for health promotion and disease prevention; nonetheless, challenges persist, mainly in increasing adoption among older adults. To ensure equitable access to digital health interventions, further research is required to address these issues, especially in low-resource settings.