Interventions used to improve self-management among adults with hypertension: a scoping review

Background Hypertension remains a major contributor to cardiovascular morbidity and mortality worldwide, and long-term control depends heavily on patients' ability to manage treatment, lifestyle, monitoring, and follow-up in daily life. A broad range of interventions has been developed to strengthen these self-management functions, but the field is diverse in intervention type, delivery mode, and outcomes assessed. Methods This PRISMA-ScR-informed scoping review synthesized a previously identified and charted body of literature retrieved from PubMed, CINAHL, Web of Science, and Cochrane library. Eligible studies involved adults with hypertension and evaluated interventions intended to improve self-management or related domains such as adherence, blood pressure self-monitoring, self-efficacy, lifestyle change, or blood pressure control. Narrative synthesis, descriptive mapping, thematic analysis, and evidence mapping were used because the evidence base was heterogeneous. Results Seventy-six studies were included. Most were published from 2022 to 2025 and most used randomized designs. Mobile app and SMS programmes formed the largest intervention cluster. Across the review, interventions most often improved blood pressure control, medication adherence, self-management behaviours, self-efficacy, knowledge, and selected quality-of-life outcomes. Thematic analysis showed recurring mechanisms of effect: structured education, self-monitoring and feedback, human support, empowerment-related processes, and multicomponent design. Conclusions Hypertension self-management interventions are increasingly technology-enabled, but the most promising approaches combine education, self-monitoring, feedback, and ongoing interpersonal support. Behavioural and psychosocial gains were more consistent than short-term clinical gains, while important geographic gaps remain in lower-resource settings.