A prospective study on the use of teledermatology in psychiatric patients with chronic skin diseases

To compare the use of live interactive teledermatology versus conventional face-to-face consultation in long-term, institutionalised psychiatric patients with chronic skin diseases.

All institutionalised psychiatric patients at the Institute of Mental Health with follow-up appointments at the National Skin Centre were assessed for eligibility and invited to participate. Recruited patients were first seen by a dermatologist via videoconferencing, and then by another dermatologist in person, within 1 week. Clinical outcome measures were then assessed by a third independent dermatologist. The following outcome measures were assessed for each paired patient visit: inter-physician clinical assessment, diagnosis, management plan, adverse events and total patient turnaround time (PTAT) for each consultation.

There were a total of 13 patients (mean age, 64.6 years; range 44-80) with 27 patient visits. All were male patients with chronic schizophrenia. The predominant skin condition was chronic eczema and its variants (62%), followed by cutaneous amyloidosis (23%) and psoriasis (15%). The level of complete and partial agreement between the teledermatology and face-to-face consultation was 100% for history-taking and physical examination and 96% for the investigations, diagnosis, management plan and the treatment prescribed. The PTAT for teledermatology was 23 min, compared to 240 min for face-to-face consultations. No adverse events were reported.

Teledermatology was as effective as face-to-face consultation and reduced the PTAT by 90%, resulting in increased patient convenience, operational efficiency and reduced manpower need. Our study supports the safe and cost-effective use of teledermatology for the follow-up of chronic skin conditions in psychiatric patients.