Currently submitted to: JMIR Research Protocols
Date Submitted: Feb 18, 2026
Open Peer Review Period: Feb 18, 2026 - Apr 15, 2026
(closed for review but you can still tweet)
NOTE: This is an unreviewed Preprint
Warning: This is a unreviewed preprint (What is a preprint?). Readers are warned that the document has not been peer-reviewed by expert/patient reviewers or an academic editor, may contain misleading claims, and is likely to undergo changes before final publication, if accepted, or may have been rejected/withdrawn (a note "no longer under consideration" will appear above).
Peer review me: Readers with interest and expertise are encouraged to sign up as peer-reviewer, if the paper is within an open peer-review period (in this case, a "Peer Review Me" button to sign up as reviewer is displayed above). All preprints currently open for review are listed here. Outside of the formal open peer-review period we encourage you to tweet about the preprint.
Citation: Please cite this preprint only for review purposes or for grant applications and CVs (if you are the author).
Final version: If our system detects a final peer-reviewed "version of record" (VoR) published in any journal, a link to that VoR will appear below. Readers are then encourage to cite the VoR instead of this preprint.
Settings: If you are the author, you can login and change the preprint display settings, but the preprint URL/DOI is supposed to be stable and citable, so it should not be removed once posted.
Submit: To post your own preprint, simply submit to any JMIR journal, and choose the appropriate settings to expose your submitted version as preprint.
Warning: This is an author submission that is not peer-reviewed or edited. Preprints - unless they show as "accepted" - should not be relied on to guide clinical practice or health-related behavior and should not be reported in news media as established information.
Effect of a Mobile PA Monitoring Application on Metabolic Syndrome Management in Primary Care: Protocol for a Randomized Controlled Trial
ABSTRACT
Background:
Digital health interventions, including mobile applications and wearable devices, have emerged as promising tools to promote physical activity (PA) and support chronic disease management in primary care. However, evidence remains limited regarding the real-world feasibility, patient engagement, and integration of these tools into routine family medicine practice, particularly in individuals with metabolic syndrome. In addition, physicians’ attitudes and intentions toward telemedicine may influence the successful adoption of such interventions.
Objective:
This study aims to evaluate the preliminary effectiveness of a mobile health intervention for PA monitoring in individuals with metabolic syndrome managed in primary care. Secondary objectives include assessing user engagement and adherence to the intervention, changes in PA-related and clinical outcomes, and exploring family physicians’ attitudes and behavioral intentions toward telemedicine.
Methods:
This is a two-arm, parallel, pilot randomized controlled trial conducted in primary care units in the Coimbra region, Portugal. Eligible adults with metabolic syndrome will be randomized (1:1) to an intervention group receiving access to a mobile application integrated with an activity-tracking wristband or to a control group receiving usual care. Data will be collected at baseline and 6 months. Primary outcomes include changes in PA levels and physical literacy, assessed through validated questionnaires and objective analitical results. Secondary outcomes comprise health-related quality of life, cardiometabolic parameters, adherence and engagement metrics derived from app usage, retention and dropout rates. Physicians’ attitudes and intentions regarding telemedicine will be assessed using the Physician Attitudes and Intention to use Telemedicine (PAIT) questionnaire. Analyses will primarily be descriptive and exploratory, aiming to inform the design of a future full-scale trial.
Results:
Participant recruitment is planned to begin in July 2025. This pilot trial will generate data on feasibility, adherence, engagement, and preliminary behavioral and clinical outcomes associated with the use of a mobile PA monitoring intervention in primary care.
Conclusions:
This study will provide important insights into integrating mobile health applications for PA promotion among individuals with metabolic syndrome in routine primary care. The findings will inform future larger randomized controlled trials and contribute to implementation strategies for digital health interventions in family medicine. Clinical Trial: EECC-2024_4-220 e 335/25 CE
Citation
Request queued. Please wait while the file is being generated. It may take some time.
Copyright
© The authors. All rights reserved. This is a privileged document currently under peer-review/community review (or an accepted/rejected manuscript). Authors have provided JMIR Publications with an exclusive license to publish this preprint on it's website for review and ahead-of-print citation purposes only. While the final peer-reviewed paper may be licensed under a cc-by license on publication, at this stage authors and publisher expressively prohibit redistribution of this draft paper other than for review purposes.