Diagnostic concordance 0.87 between conventional office-based visits, teledermoscopy encounters
THURSDAY, Jan. 29, 2015 (HealthDay News) — Teledermoscopy is feasible and effective for short-term monitoring of clinically atypical nevi, according to a study published online Jan. 28 in JAMA Dermatology.
Xinyuan Wu, from the Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in New York City, and colleagues examined the feasibility, efficacy, and patient receptivity of teledermoscopy for short-term monitoring of clinically atypical nevi. Thirty-four patients were included in the prospective cohort study, and 29 completed follow-up. At baseline and follow-up (three to four months), dermoscopic images were obtained by a dermatologist in an office-based setting and by the patient using an iPhone. The office-based dermatologist assessed the standard images while mobile images were sent to a teledermatologist, who evaluated image quality and the presence of significant clinical lesion change.
The researchers found that 28 of the 29 patients were able to acquire baseline and follow-up images that were evaluable by the teledermatologist. The diagnostic concordance was 0.87 between conventional office-based visits and teledermoscopy encounters. For short-term monitoring of nevi, patients reported high receptivity to teledermoscopy.
“The implementation of teledermoscopy can potentially enhance patient convenience, optimize physician scheduling, and promote efficiency,” the authors write.
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