To explore the usefulness of, and evidence for, telehealth in the management of hypertension in the primary care setting.

The population, intervention, comparison and outcome (PICO) tool was used to define the research question for the literature review, which was: ‘Do adults with hypertension being monitored with telehealth/telemonitoring have a higher quality of life and improved management compared with standard care?’

The literature review identified that a common challenge in implementing telehealth in patients with hypertension was the requirement to improve patients' compliance with and participation in telehealth systems.

Ongoing challenges with the implementation of telehealth include suboptimal feedback, and reduced patient interest in and compliance with telehealth systems. It was also noted that patients involved in longer trials had a higher withdrawal rate than those enrolled on shorter intense studies. In addition, patient lifestyle choices, including outdoor working, and lack of Wi-Fi proved a challenge to self-monitoring. If not resolved, such challenges could adversely affect the widespread use of telehealth.