Teleconsultation at a public ophthalmic teaching hospital during the COVID-19 pandemic

ABSTRACT Purpose: To analyze teleconsultation at a public ophthalmic teaching hospital during the COVID-19 pandemic in Brazil. Methods: Medical records of patients who requested ophthalmological teleconsultation between June 2020 and March 2021 were reviewed. The main outcomes included demographic data, eye disease symptoms, hypothesized diagnosis, and management. Moreover, the results of a satisfaction survey administered after the consultation were analyzed. Results: Medical records of a total of 161 patients were reviewed. The mean age was 45.98 ± 17.57 (8-90) years, and most were women (113, 70.20%). Only 57 (35.60%) of the patients had made previous follow-up visits to the hospital. The most frequent reason for consultation was the need for a new eyeglass prescription (73, 45.34%), followed by dry eye symptoms (16, 9.93%) and pterygium (13, 8.07%). Other reasons were the monitoring of previously diagnosed eye diseases, such as glaucoma, retinopathies, strabismus, and keratoconus. Regarding the satisfaction survey, 151 (93.78%) patients answered the online questionnaire. Most reported that they were satisfied with the teleconsultation (94.03%) and would participate in a future teleconsultation (90.06%). Conclusion: Teleconsultation could be widely used to assist patients in public ophthalmology healthcare and teaching hospitals. Even though new eyeglass prescriptions are a frequent reason for ophthalmological appointments, patients tend to be satisfied with teleconsultation, as it also provides guidance.摘要 研究目的：分析巴西某公立眼科教学医院在新冠疫情期间开展的远程会诊(teleconsultation)情况。 研究方法：回顾性分析2020年6月至2021年3月期间申请眼科远程会诊的患者病历资料。核心观测指标包括人口统计学数据、眼部疾病症状、疑似诊断结果及诊疗方案。此外，本研究还对会诊后开展的满意度调查问卷结果进行了分析。 研究结果：本次共回顾分析161例患者的病历资料。患者平均年龄为45.98±17.57岁，年龄区间为8~90岁；其中女性患者共113例，占比70.20%。仅57例（35.60%）患者此前曾在该医院接受过随访就诊。最常见的会诊原因为需重新开具眼镜处方(eyeglass prescription)（73例，45.34%），其次为干眼症状(dry eye symptoms)（16例，9.93%）与翼状胬肉(pterygium)（13例，8.07%）。其他会诊原因包括对既往确诊的眼部疾病进行随访监测，如青光眼(glaucoma)、视网膜病变(retinopathies)、斜视(strabismus)及圆锥角膜(keratoconus)。在满意度调查方面，共有151例（93.78%）患者完成了线上问卷。绝大多数患者表示对远程会诊服务满意（94.03%），且愿意在未来再次参与远程会诊（90.06%）。 研究结论：远程会诊可广泛应用于公立眼科医疗与教学医院，为患者提供诊疗支持。尽管重新开具眼镜处方是眼科门诊的常见就诊原因，但患者对远程会诊的满意度仍较高，该服务同样可提供专业诊疗指导。