Abstract

PARISE, Ana C.; CORIA, Hernán E.; LOPEZ, Valeria  and  SANTINI ARAUJO, María Gala. Pie diabético y pandemia de la COVID-19: adaptación al uso de la Telemedicina por los especialistas de pie y tobillo de los Servicios de Traumatología de la Argentina. Rev. Asoc. Argent. Ortop. Traumatol. [online]. 2023, vol.88, n.1, pp.45-52. ISSN 1852-7434.  http://dx.doi.org/https://doi.org/10.15417/issn.1852-7434.2023.88.1.1623.

Introduction: Telemedicine was the recommendation of international societies during the COVID-19 pandemic for medical consultations in patients with diabetic foot (DF). The main aim of this work is to evaluate the use of telemedicine as a tool for the evaluation and follow-up of patients with DF by foot and ankle specialists in Argentina. As secondary objectives, we propose to assess the satisfaction perceived by the professionals with the use of this tool, to evaluate the specific strategies used to carry out the remote medical consultation, and to determine its permanence when returning to the usual care activity. Materials and Methods: Three surveys were sent to members of the Argentine Society of Medicine and Surgery of the Leg and Foot in May and July 2020 and April 2022. Results: According to 75% of respondents, the most valuable function of telemedicine was prevention, followed by monitoring of the clinical pathology (54.1%), postoperative follow-up (41.6%), and diagnosis (29.1%). The most commonly used resources for remote consultation were telephone conversations, followed by images sent by instant messaging. Only 37.5% used electronic health record platforms during 2020. Conclusions: The most commonly used resources for remote consultation were telephone conversations, followed by images sent by instant messaging. 33.4% of respondents were satisfied with telemedicine consultations in May 2020, while in July, satisfaction with this tool rose to 46.7%. In April 2022, only 13% of those surveyed in July 2020 continued offering remote consultations.

Keywords : Telemedicine; foot and ankle; diabetic foot; traumatology; COVID-19 pandemic.

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