The Use of Telehealth to Improve Office Efficiency and Health Care Access Among Patients Being Evaluated for Revision Total Joint Arthroplasty

The Use of Telehealth to Improve Office Efficiency and Health Care Access Among Patients Being Evaluated for Revision Total Joint Arthroplasty

Patients being evaluated for revision total joint arthroplasty (RTJA) are often referred to tertiary care centers, which may decrease their access to adequate health care and overburden these health care systems. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the feasibility and effectiveness of RTJA pat...

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Published in:Orthopedics (Thorofare, N.J.) Vol. 47; no. 6; pp. 1 - 5
Main Authors: Lutz, Rex W, Alexander, Tia N, McCahon, Joseph A S, Lencer, Adam J, Patrizio, Harrison A, Courtney, P Maxwell, Deirmengian, Gregory K
Format: Journal Article
Language:English
Published: United States Slack, Inc 04-09-2024
SLACK INCORPORATED
Subjects:
Clinics
Coronaviruses
COVID-19
Demographics
E-health
Efficiency
Evaluation
Health care access
Infections
Joint replacement
Joint replacement surgery
Joint surgery
Management
Medical diagnosis
Medical referrals
Orthopedics
Patient outcomes
Patients
Prostheses
Service enhancement
Surgeons
Technology application
Telemedicine
United States
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Summary:Patients being evaluated for revision total joint arthroplasty (RTJA) are often referred to tertiary care centers, which may decrease their access to adequate health care and overburden these health care systems. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the feasibility and effectiveness of RTJA patient evaluation via telehealth. We identified a consecutive series of patients newly evaluated for a symptomatic TJA by two academic surgeons during a 1-year period. Clinical records, radiographs, and laboratory values were reviewed to determine whether the patient was indicated for RTJA. Efficiency was determined by calculating the percentage of patients who could have been adequately evaluated with telehealth. We then used the modalities required for diagnosis in each RTJA case to determine the feasibility of evaluating such patients through telehealth. Of the 381 patients evaluated for RTJA candidacy, 154 (40.4%) were indicated for revision surgery. All 152 patients evaluated for possible hip revision could have been evaluated and diagnosed via telehealth, demonstrating a telehealth efficiency of 100%. Of 229 patients evaluated for possible knee revision, 183 were able to be evaluated and diagnosed via telehealth. The 46 remaining patients were indicated for revision secondary to instability, which would require an in-office examination for diagnosis. The efficiency of telehealth for potential knee revision patients was 79.9%. Telehealth may be useful in evaluating patients with symptomatic TJA. It may increase the efficiency of in-office evaluations and reduce potential barriers to health care access. [ . 202x;4x(x):xx-xx.].
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ISSN:0147-7447
1938-2367
1938-2367
DOI:10.3928/01477447-20240826-02