Expert Opinion on the Utility of Telemedicine in Obesity Care: Recommendations on a Hybrid Multidisciplinary Integrated Care Follow-Up Algorithm

PURPOSE OF REVIEW

The proposed expert opinion was prepared by a panel of obesity and law specialists from Turkey to review the utility of telemedicine in obesity care and to provide a guidance document with recommendations on a hybrid multidisciplinary integrated care follow-up algorithm and the legislation governing telemedicine practice to assist obesity specialists in practicing the telemedicine.

RECENT FINDINGS

The efficacy and feasibility of telemedicine interventions in supporting obesity management programs even during pandemics confirm that obesity is a particularly well-suited field for telemedicine, emphasizing the strong likelihood of continued utilization of telemedicine in obesity management, beyond the pandemic period. Telemedicine has great potential to address several barriers to ongoing weight-management care, such as challenges of access to specialized care, cost, and time limitations as well as patient adherence to treatment. However, telemedicine practice should complement rather than replace the in-person visits which are unique in building rapport and offering social support. Accordingly, the participating experts recommend the use of a hybrid integrated care model in the management of obesity, with the use of telemedicine, as an adjunct to in-person visits, to enable the provision of suggested intensive obesity management via frequent visits by a multidisciplinary team of obesity specialists. Further research addressing the utility of telemedicine in terms of optimal modality and duration for successful long-term obesity management outcomes is necessary to develop specific guidelines on telemedicine practice. In addition, the legislation governing the norms and protocols on confidentiality, privacy, access, and liability needs to be improved.

Preference for Telemedicine Versus In-Person Visit Among Patients with Psoriasis Receiving Biological Drugs

Introduction

The use of telemedicine has significantly increased since the outbreak of the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic. In the dermatological setting, patients with stable plaque psoriasis on maintenance therapy with biological drugs may be suitable candidates for telemedicine, although their preference for telemedicine has not yet been investigated. The aim of this study was to investigate the preference for telemedicine versus in-person visit among patients with psoriasis receiving biological drugs and the reported reasons behind their preferences.

Methods

Consecutive adult patients with chronic plaque psoriasis in stable clinical remission (Psoriasis Area Severity Index [PASI] ≤ 3 for at least 12 months) receiving maintenance biological therapy answered a survey investigating whether they would choose telemedicine or in-person visit for the next scheduled visit and the reasons behind their preference. The survey was undertaken through a questionnaire that was developed according to a structured process.

Results

Of the 246 participants in the survey, 118 (48%) preferred telemedicine over an in-person visit for their next scheduled visit with a dermatologist. Multivariate logistic regression analysis revealed that previous experience with digital video-communication tools was a significant predictor for the preference for telemedicine (odds ratio [OR] 10.75; 95% confidence interval [CI] 3.61–32.03), while older age (< 60 years) was negatively associated with the preference for telemedicine (OR 0.30; 95% CI 0.10–0.90). The most common reasons (75%) for preferring telemedicine were saving time and safety in relation to the risk presented by the Sars-CoV-2 pandemic (38%). In contrast, 56% of the patients who preferred the in-person visit option declared that they were unable to use video-communication tools.

Conclusion

About half of the patients with stable psoriasis receiving biological drugs may be good candidates for telemedicine.

Graphic abstract

Supplementary Information

The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s13555-021-00555-3.

Remote Monitoring of Automated Peritoneal Dialysis Improves Personalization of Dialytic Prescription and Patient's Independence

BACKGROUND

Remote monitoring (RM) supports a healthcare model that enhances patients' self-management. We evaluated the utility of RM in patients undergoing automated peritoneal dialysis (APD).

METHODS

We observed 37 -RM-APD patients, 16 incidents, and 21 prevalents switched from traditional APD (T-APD). We observed the number of changes for APD prescription, the frequency of visits, and PD adequacy parameters during 1 year of RM utilization in APD.

RESULTS

The APD prescriptions were modified more frequently in RM-APD vs. T-APD in incident (p = 0.002) and prevalent patients (p = 0.045). Visits were significant less in -RM-APD than in T-APD for incident patient (p = 0.008). No significant difference was found between prevalent populations. PD adequacy was similar in both groups.

CONCLUSIONS

Our results demonstrate that RM allows an efficient use of healthcare resources, helping to improve personalization of APD prescription and to intervene early with "trouble shooting", thereby reducing the frequency of in-person visits for emergency problems.