Effectiveness of digital health interventions in influencing the primary prevention of non-communicable diseases: protocol for an umbrella review

INTRODUCTION: Non-communicable diseases (NCDs) currently contribute to over 50% of the global disease burden. Digital tools bear the potential to mitigate the risk of NCDs by facilitating personalised, preventive healthcare. It is therefore pertinent to examine the specific components that contribute to the success or constrain the impact of digital health interventions (DHIs), with particular attention to the sustainability of their long-term effects. Additionally, it is important to provide an up-to-date perspective on emerging interventions and technologies that have not yet been comprehensively addressed in the literature. This protocol defines the methodology for an umbrella review to synthesise the available high-quality evidence from systematic reviews and meta-analyses regarding effectiveness of DHIs in influencing the primary prevention of NCDs. METHODS AND ANALYSIS: Using a rigorous search strategy, the subsequent databases will be searched in December 2025: MEDLINE, Web of Science, CINAHL, Embase, Scopus and Epistemonikos. Following the Joanna Briggs Institute (JBI) methodology, the selected literature will be screened based on predefined inclusion criteria. This includes systematic reviews and meta-analyses published within the last 5 years, without restrictions on country or language, that evaluate the effectiveness of any DHI aimed at the primary prevention of NCDs. Suitable full-text articles will be extracted by four researchers and independently assessed for methodological quality by two researchers using the AMSTAR-2 (A Measurement Tool to Assess Systematic Reviews) tool. The results will be presented in a summary table aligned with the review question and subquestions, accompanied by a narrative synthesis that explores the findings and their relevance to the research aims. ETHICS AND DISSEMINATION: Ethical approval is not required as no primary data will be collected. The findings of this umbrella review will be published in a peer-reviewed journal and presented at academic conferences. PROSPERO REGISTRATION NUMBER: CRD420251139744.