DIETARY RECOMMENDATIONS STUDY PROTOCOL: EFFECTIVENESS OF USING A MOBILE APPLICATION DEVELOPED FOR IMPROVEMENT NUTRITIONAL KNOWLEDGE OF PHYSICIANS

Background and Objective: Arterial hypertension is one of the main predictors of cardiovascular diseases. Blood pressure can be reduced by following specific guidelines known as Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension (DASH Diet); however, evidences are scarce about the knowledge of primary care professionals to guide dietary recommendations. The increasing use of smartphones and tablets can be presented as an opportunity for strategic actions. We aim to investigate the effectiveness of using a mobile application in knowledge and skills to guide dietary recommendations for hypertension by physicians working in primary care in Brazil. Methods: Randomized clinical trial with parallel arms conducted in 110 primary care physicians from all geographic regions of Brazil. Physicians randomized to the intervention group used a mobile app for 1 month. This mobile app had qualitative information on food choices for prevention and control of hypertension, following the principles of the DASH diet. We evaluated as outcome the improvement in the score of knowledge and skills of “The Lifestyle Modification Knowledge Test” questionnaire adapted for use in Brazil. Results and Conclusions: This study will assess whether the mobile app can improve the knowledge and ability of primary care physicians for nutritional counseling of prevention and management of hypertension. m-Health tools intervention could possibly help the clinical practice of physicians working in primary care, and provide inputs for the planning public health policies that may impact on people's lives, especially those with hypertension.