Abstract
Purpose :
To analyze the use of teleophthalmology during the COVID-19 pandemic, with regard to patient demographics, diagnostic precision, therapeutic effectiveness, and patient satisfaction.
Methods :
The records of 520 consecutive patients who had telemedicine visits at Stony Brook Ophthalmology between March 30 and June 2, 2020, were reviewed to create a retrospective, cross-sectional analysis. Telemedicine visits were offered to all new patients requesting care and established patients who were scheduled or due for follow-up or postoperative visits. The visits were reviewed and the chief complaint, past medical history, past ocular history, diagnoses, treatment/management, and sub-specialty of the provider were analyzed. Precision was determined by comparing the examination findings and diagnoses of the telemedicine visit with the subsequent in-person, follow-up examination. Progression or resolution of the patients’ symptoms was determined by the attending physician’s assessment at follow-up visits. A post telemedicine visit satisfaction survey was sent to all patients and the results were analyzed.
Results :
Telemedicine visits were offered to 783 patients, 520 (66.4%) of whom accepted (mean age= 34.9 years; range 1-95). Of these 520 patients, 409 (78.7%) were established and 105 (20.2%) had in-person follow-up visits., Overall, the diagnostic precision of the follow-up visits was 89.5%. Of the patients who had in-person follow-up visits, 56.8% remained stable, 32.4% improved, and 10.8% worsened. Established patients presented with more extensive ocular histories/procedures, and experienced a higher percentage of worsening symptoms/disease stage compared to new patients. In total, 78 (15.0%) patients completed the survey. Overall satisfaction was reported by 91.9% of patients, although only 23.0% preferred telemedicine to an in-office visit.
Conclusions :
Teleophthalmology provides high levels of precision and patient satisfaction for a wide range of ophthalmologic visits, although most patients still preferred in-office examinations. Employing teleophthalmology for follow-up and emergency care may provide patients with an effective alternative during pandemic situations and beyond.
This abstract was presented at the 2022 ARVO Annual Meeting, held in Denver, CO, May 1-4, 2022, and virtually.