Clinical and demographic analysis of telemedicine "doctor-patient" consultations at the Endocrinology Research Centre
BACKGROUND: The COVID-19 pandemic has accelerated the development of telemedicine technologies. Today there is evidence of the successful use of telemedicine in various fields of health care, in particular in endocrinology. At the same time, there is not enough information for effective integration of telemedicine into the management of patients with various endocrinopathies.AIM: The aim of this study is a clinical and demographic assessment of the structure of telemedicine consultations (TMC) conducted at the Endocrinology Research Centre in 2020-2021.MATERIALS AND METHODS: A single-stage, single-center retrospective study was conducted. The study included all patients who received at least one TMC at the Endocrinology Research Centre in 2020-2021. Clinical and demographic information was analyzed (gender, age of patients, region of residence, ICD-10 code). All patients signed voluntary informed consent for TMC. The obtained data were processed using the Microsoft Office 2013 software package.RESULTS: In 2020, 1,548 TMC were held, in 2021 - 4180 TMC. Among adults, women predominated in the structure of referrals (83-86%), among children there is a tendency towards equivalent referrals for boys and girls (in 2021 - 45% and 55%, respectively). The median age of adult patients in 2021 was 38 years [31; 53], among children - 11 years [7; 14]. In 2020, residents of 74 regions of the Russian Federation applied for TMC, in 2021 - of 82 regions. There is a tendency towards the prevalence of patients from the Central, Volga, Southern and North Caucasian federal districts in the TMC structure. Diseases of the thyroid gland predominated in the nosological structure of TMC.CONCLUSION: TMC turned out to be in demand in patients with a wide variety of endocrinopathies. It is important to conduct further analysis of both the TMC market and the effectiveness of remote counseling for various nosologies to determine the place of telemedicine in the modern healthcare structure and to introduce TMK into the system of clinical guidelines and programs of territorial compulsory medical insurance funds.