Realtime telemedicine for paediatric otolaryngology pre-admission screening.

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2005-12-26
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We conducted a feasibility study to examine whether a paediatric patient at a regional hospital could be assessed by an ear nose and throat ENT specialist via videoconference therefore saving at least one journey to the tertiary hospital for a pre admission appointment A video otoscope was used with standard videoconference equipment and realtime images were transmitted at a bandwidth of 384 kbit s In all 13 telepaediatric ENT clinics were conducted between November 2003 and April 2005 and 98 consultations were facilitated for 64 patients The main reasons for referral were recurrent tonsillitis 25 and obstructive sleep apnoea 23 Of the 64 patients examined by telemedicine 42 66 were recommended for surgery and placed on the surgical waiting list About 12 patients 19 required travel to the tertiary centre for further investigations and tests not available locally while four patients 6 were reviewed via videoconference during a scheduled clinic Six patients 9 required no further follow up after their initial telepaediatric consultation Videoconferencing is an effective method of assessing ENT conditions of paediatric patients and for pre screening potential surgical admissions to a tertiary hospital Careful consideration of a number of economic and logistical factors needs to be made before large investments are made to expand the service
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