Thai diabetes app shows little extra HbA1c benefit over standard education

• At 6 months, mean HbA1c was 7.8% in the app group and 8.1% in the control group, but the between-group difference was not statistically significant.
• Fasting plasma glucose was significantly lower at 6 months in the subgroup younger than 65 years assigned to the app.
• The intervention group showed significantly higher DSMES scores from baseline to 6 months, suggesting support for self-management behaviors.

These findings apply most directly to adults with uncontrolled type 2 diabetes in outpatient care who can use a smartphone. The results are especially relevant to Thai or similar Asian settings where local food databases may improve the usefulness of nutrition tracking.

The app was tested on top of diabetes self-management education and support, not instead of it. Because both groups received education, the study mainly shows whether the app adds extra benefit beyond usual structured care. The main HbA1c result was not clearly different, and the strongest glucose signal appeared in a younger subgroup.

• This was a single-center study with 129 participants.
• The trial was open label, so participant behavior may have been influenced by knowing group assignment.
• Six-month analyses excluded participants with missing outcome data rather than using full intention-to-treat methods.
• Average app adherence was moderate, which may have limited the size of any benefit.