{
  "id": 2189029,
  "title": "Effect of a digital intervention on mental health symptoms in adults with chronic conditions: A three-arm randomized controlled trial",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/20/effect-of-a-digital-intervention-on-mental-health-symptoms-in-adults",
  "topic": "health",
  "section": "Health & Medicine",
  "published": "2026-08-20T14:00:00.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "PLOS Medicine",
    "slug": "plos-medicine",
    "url": "https://journals.plos.org/plosmedicine/article?id=10.1371/journal.pmed.1005198"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "A recent study investigated the impact of a digital intervention on mental health symptoms in adults with chronic health issues. Anxiety, depression, and fatigue are prevalent among those with chronic conditions, significantly impacting their quality of life. Researchers conducted a randomized controlled trial to assess the effectiveness of a multicomponent digital intervention with or without human support compared to usual care. The study involved 825 adults aged 18 and above, who had chronic medical conditions and access to the internet, and was conducted across 13 countries from February 2023 to December 2024. Participants were randomly assigned to either a waitlist control, a self-directed digital program (eMPower), or a combination of the eMPower program with weekly human support from trained nonclinicians. The primary outcome measured was the change in Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS) scores at 12 weeks. Results showed that the eMPower + human support arm had a significant improvement in HADS total scores (2.9 points) compared to the control arm. Both intervention arms showed improvements in various secondary outcomes, including HADS anxiety and depression subscales, fatigue, and health-related quality of life. No adverse events were reported in any of the intervention arms. Limitations of the study include the use of a waitlist control design, reliance on self-reported diagnoses, a 12-week follow-up period, and a predominantly female and highly educated sample, which may limit the generalizability of the findings. Future research should focus on longer-term follow-ups and cost-effectiveness analyses.",
  "summary": "by Emily Johnson, Ashley Hyde, Shaina Corrick, Serena Isley, Gail Wright, Justin Ezekowitz, Yinggan Zheng, Dayna Lee-Baggley, Jude Spiers, John C. Spence, Margaret L. McNeely, Stephanie Thompson, Kathleen Ismond, Sarah Tymchuk, Puneeta Tandon Background Anxiety, depression, and fatigue affect >50% of adults across a range of chronic medical conditions, leading to reductions in quality of life.…",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}