Teledermatology in the COVID-19 pandemic: A systematic review
Chee Hoou Loh, Steve Yew Chong Tam, Choon Chiat Oh
Abstract
BACKGROUND: Teledermatology (TD) has emerged as a critical way of delivering care remotely in the COVID-19 pandemic. OBJECTIVE: We conducted a systematic review to assess how TD has been implemented worldwide. METHODS: We searched PubMed, Scopus, Embase, Web of Science, and Google Scholar for articles on the use of TD for patient care, written in English and published from December 1, 2019, to October 15, 2020. RESULTS: Twenty-seven studies were included, involving 16,981 patients. There was significant uptake of TD during the pandemic. Synchronous TD appeared to be more commonly implemented than asynchronous TD. Common ambulatory dermatoses such as acne or eczema were reported to be more amenable to TD assessment and management. TD also appeared to be useful for the diagnosis of cutaneous involvement of COVID-19 infection and follow-up of stable oncodermatology cases. LIMITATIONS: A pooled analysis of all relevant outcomes was not always possible due to the heterogeneity in the methodologies of included studies. CONCLUSION: TD is a useful and convenient tool for the management of common ambulatory dermatoses in the COVID-19 pandemic.