Usefulness and economic evaluation of ADSL-based live interactive teledermatology in areas with shortage of dermatologists

To overcome the problem of maldistribution of dermatologists in rural areas, live interactive teleconsultation systems are being used in some countries. However, these systems are not in common use because few evaluations on their efficiency and economic viability were reported.

We constructed an easy-to-use asymmetric digital subscriber line (ADSL)-based live interactive teleconsultation system and conducted 150 trial sessions between two rural hospitals and Shimane University Hospital. The clinical usefulness and economic advantages of this system were evaluated using data obtained from the trials.

The system efficiently captured images at a resolution sufficient for specialized consultations: follicular openings were visible in the images obtained from a distance of 2 m. This system is more advantageous than a conventional clinic if the following condition is fulfilled: y ≤ 6.00 x-3.86 [x, time required for one-way travel (h); y, time required for consultation (h)]. Our two lines in trial fulfilled this condition.

Asymmetric digital subscriber line-based live interactive teleconsultation technology is beneficial in many rural hospitals that do not have a dermatologist.