Can a Mobile App Help Adults with ADHD Stick to Their Medication?

What you need to know

The FOCUS ADHD mobile app was designed to help adults with ADHD stick to their medication and learn more about their condition.
While using the app alone didn’t increase medication adherence, combining it with a financial incentive (discount on medication) did lead to more consistent medication intake tracking, at least initially.
The app was rated positively by users, especially for the quality of information it provided about ADHD.

Understanding ADHD in Adults

Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a condition that affects both children and adults. It’s characterized by difficulties with attention, hyperactivity, and impulsivity. For adults with ADHD, these symptoms can lead to challenges in many areas of life, including:

Lower quality of life
Poor performance at work or in school
Lower income
Difficulties in social relationships
Increased risk of substance use and other health issues

While there are effective treatments available for ADHD, including medication and therapy, one of the biggest challenges is getting people to stick with their treatment long-term. This is where technology, like mobile apps, might be able to help.

The FOCUS ADHD App

Researchers developed a mobile app called FOCUS ADHD to help adults with ADHD manage their condition. The app includes several features:

A task manager to help users keep track of their treatment plan
Daily reminders to take medication
Weekly assessments of ADHD symptoms
A way to record any side effects from medication
An optional reward system
Educational content about ADHD
The ability to share information with family members or healthcare providers

The study wanted to see if using this app could help people stick to their medication regimen better and learn more about ADHD.

The Study Design

The researchers divided 73 adults with ADHD into three groups:

A control group that received usual treatment without the app
A group that used the FOCUS ADHD app along with their usual treatment
A group that used the app and also received a 25% discount on their ADHD medication if they logged at least 80% of their medication doses in the app

The study lasted for 3 months, and the researchers looked at several outcomes:

How well participants stuck to their medication regimen
How much participants used the app
How much participants learned about ADHD
How participants rated the quality and usability of the app

Key Findings

Medication Adherence

Surprisingly, all groups in the study had very high medication adherence rates - over 100% based on the measurement used (called the Medication Possession Ratio). This might have been because all participants received weekly check-in calls from research assistants, which could have encouraged them to take their medication more consistently than they normally would.

App Usage

The group that received a discount for using the app consistently logged their medication intake more often than the group that just used the app without the discount. This was especially true in the first part of the study. However, this difference decreased over time.

Interestingly, everyone in the discount group downloaded and used the app, while only 75% of people in the group without the discount did so.

ADHD Knowledge

The app didn’t seem to increase people’s knowledge about ADHD. However, this might be because participants already had a good understanding of ADHD at the start of the study, leaving little room for improvement.

App Quality

Participants generally gave the app positive ratings, especially for the quality of information it provided about ADHD. The app received an overall quality score of 3.45 out of 5, which is considered good.

What This Means for Adults with ADHD

While the FOCUS ADHD app didn’t dramatically improve medication adherence on its own, it shows promise as a tool for managing ADHD, especially when combined with other strategies:

Financial incentives: The study showed that offering a discount on medication encouraged more people to use the app and log their medication intake. This suggests that combining digital tools with real-world rewards could be an effective way to promote better ADHD management.
Information quality: Participants rated the app’s information about ADHD highly. This indicates that mobile apps can be a valuable source of reliable information for people with ADHD.
Engagement challenges: Like many health apps, usage of the FOCUS ADHD app decreased over time. This highlights the need for strategies to keep users engaged long-term, such as personalized content, interactive features, or integration with healthcare providers.
Potential for monitoring: Even though the app didn’t increase adherence in this study, it provided a way for users to track their medication intake. This could be valuable for both patients and healthcare providers in monitoring treatment progress.

Conclusions

Mobile apps like FOCUS ADHD have potential to support adults with ADHD in managing their condition, but they may be most effective when combined with other strategies, such as financial incentives.
The high-quality information provided by such apps can be a valuable resource for people with ADHD.
More research is needed to find ways to keep users engaged with health apps over the long term.
While technology can be a helpful tool, it’s important to remember that it should complement, not replace, regular care from healthcare professionals.