Digital heart health tool linked to significant blood pressure reductions in women before and after menopause

Key Takeaways: 

• One of the largest studies of a digital heart health programme has found that Hello Heart significantly reduces blood pressure in women, particularly those in perimenopause and postmenopause.
• Blood pressure reductions were sustained over 12 months, even among women with severely elevated baseline levels.
• The findings highlight the potential of targeted digital tools to address a long-overlooked cardiovascular risk window in women’s health.
  

Introduction

A new peer-reviewed study published in the American Journal of Preventive Cardiology has found that the Hello Heart digital heart health programme is associated with meaningful reductions in blood pressure among people with hypertension, particularly among women undergoing perimenopause and postmenopause. These are life stages where cardiovascular risk rises sharply, yet care and prevention strategies are often lacking.

The study, titled “Blood Pressure Reduction by Gender and Menopause Status Among Hypertensive Participants of a Mobile Health Cardiovascular Risk Self-Management Program”, analysed data from over 48,000 participants enrolled in the Hello Heart programme between July 2015 and September 2023. Women comprised 55 percent of the study cohort, making this one of the largest evaluations to date of a digital intervention focused on cardiovascular health in women.

Results: Blood pressure reductions across sex and menopause status

The study found that participants using the Hello Heart app experienced statistically significant and sustained reductions in blood pressure. Although the programme was effective for all users, women achieved particularly notable results.

• Greater reductions in women: Women experienced greater improvements in blood pressure than men, even after adjusting for confounding factors such as age and medication use.
• Improvement during menopause: Women in postmenopause, despite having higher baseline blood pressure levels, achieved blood pressure reductions comparable to their premenopausal peers.
• Impact on those at highest risk: Among individuals with stage 2 hypertension (≥140 mmHg), reductions were sustained over 12 months, and women in this group achieved greater reductions than matched male participants.
  

Dr Jayne Morgan, the study’s lead author, cardiologist, and Vice President of Medical Affairs at Hello Heart, commented:

“This study is a crucial step forward in understanding how to support women at a time when they face heightened cardiovascular risk. We’ve known for years that menopause is a turning point for heart health, but until now, there’s been little data on scalable, effective ways to intervene during this phase. These findings show that digital tools can help close the gap.”

About the Hello Heart programme

Hello Heart is a mobile-based digital health platform designed to help individuals self-manage their cardiovascular risk. The programme combines several features:

• A Bluetooth-connected blood pressure monitor
• Reminders and tools to support medication adherence
• AI-driven personalised coaching
• Educational content tailored specifically to people in menopause
  

By integrating behavioural science and personalised insights, the programme aims to empower individuals to make sustained changes in cardiovascular health behaviours. The targeted educational content for menopausal women is a distinguishing feature and was cited in the study as a likely contributor to the improvements seen.

Experts call for proactive use of digital health in women’s heart care

Dr Erin Michos, Professor of Medicine and Director of Women’s Cardiovascular Health at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, and a co-author of the study, highlighted the significance of digital access:

“Menopause is a time of change, but it should not be the beginning of cardiovascular decline. Accessible digital health programmes like Hello Heart’s can empower women with actionable tools to reduce risk of a serious event.”

Dr Martha Gulati, Director of Cardiovascular Prevention and Associate Director of the Barbra Streisand Women’s Heart Center at Cedars-Sinai, echoed this sentiment:

“We need to think of menopause as a window of opportunity when it comes to heart health and get proactive about helping women understand their risk and take action. This is a strong example of how we can do that.”

A scalable solution for a neglected risk window

The study’s findings add weight to the growing call for tailored, sex-specific strategies in cardiovascular prevention. Menopause is now widely recognised as a critical juncture for cardiovascular health, yet many routine care models still overlook this stage.

By demonstrating that a scalable, app-based intervention can deliver measurable and lasting benefits for women during and after menopause, the study represents a promising step forward in closing the gender gap in heart health outcomes.