Smartphone app helps pregnant women in Ghana monitor blood pressure at home
Official title: Adapting and evaluating smartphone app-enhanced home blood pressure monitoring among pregnant women in Ghana
Funded at University of Michigan at Ann Arbor · NIH-11607773 · Data updated 2026-11-12
A smartphone app is being customized for pregnant women in Ghana to support home blood pressure monitoring and improve safety during pregnancy.
Quick facts
| Grant type | NIH-funded research |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | University of Michigan at Ann Arbor NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Ann Arbor, United States) |
| Project start | September 15, 2024 |
| Project end | April 30, 2029 |
| Funding year | 2026 |
| Award (this year) | $281,727 |
| NIH project number | 4R33TW012939-03 |
| Project ID | NIH-11607773 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
Pregnant women in Ghana using smartphones who have access to the connected blood pressure monitor and are comfortable with basic mobile app use.
✕Less likely to help
Women without access to a smartphone or those who cannot use the app due to language or literacy barriers may not benefit.
What this research studies
This project adapts a home blood pressure monitoring app to the Ghanaian setting to overcome barriers like language, literacy, and technology access. It uses stakeholder feedback from Ghanaian patients and clinicians to refine usability and cultural relevance. The study progresses through development, feasibility testing with 100 participants over four weeks, and evaluation of acceptability and practicality, with clinical alerts to flag high blood pressure or preeclampsia symptoms. It aims to show that app-assisted home monitoring can be feasible and acceptable in a low-resource urban setting. Future steps would be to test broader outcomes in pregnancy care.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, pregnant women in Ghana could monitor blood pressure more easily at home, enabling earlier detection and potential reduction of complications.
How similar studies have gone: Previous home BP monitoring efforts show promise, but this project adds context-specific adaptation and feasibility data for Ghana.
Where this research is happening
-
University of Michigan at Ann Arbor
Ann Arbor, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Lawrence, Emma Rachel — University of Michigan at Ann Arbor
- Study coordinator: Lawrence, Emma Rachel
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About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page.