Evaluation of the Efficacy of Telemedicine for Pre-Anesthetic Check-Up in Pediatric Patients Undergoing Elective Surgery: A Pilot Randomized Controlled Trial

Yukti Shah ¹, Neelam Prasad ¹, Apurva Sinha ¹

⁰Maulana Azad Medical College and Associated Hospitals, New Delhi, India.

Paediatric Anaesthesia +

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December 23, 2025

View abstract on PubMed

Summary

Telemedicine is effective for pediatric pre-anesthesia evaluations, showing similar clinical outcomes and high parent satisfaction compared to in-person visits. This approach enhances accessibility without compromising care quality.

Area Of Science

Pediatric Anesthesiology
Digital Health
Healthcare Accessibility

Background

Telemedicine adoption surged post-COVID-19, demonstrating high satisfaction in various medical fields.
Limited research exists on telemedicine's utility for pediatric pre-anesthetic evaluations.
This study addresses the gap in understanding telemedicine's role in pediatric pre-anesthesia care.

Purpose Of The Study

To evaluate the effectiveness and parental satisfaction of telemedicine versus in-person pre-anesthetic evaluations in children.
To compare key outcomes including visit frequency, cancellation rates, consultation duration, and physician concordance.

Main Methods

A pilot randomized controlled trial involving 70 pediatric patients (aged 3-12 years).
Comparison between telemedicine (Group T) and conventional in-person assessments (Group C).
Primary outcome: number of visits for pre-anesthetic clearance; secondary outcomes: cancellation rates, consultation duration, parent satisfaction, and physician concordance.

Main Results

Telemedicine showed comparable effectiveness to in-person visits, with no significant difference in the number of visits required for anesthesia clearance.
While initial telemedicine consultations were longer (17 min 22 s vs 13 min 19 s), likely due to technical factors, parent satisfaction scores were high (20.74/25).
High concordance rates (>85%) were observed between anesthesiologists for most aspects, except airway assessment (45.7%).

Conclusions

Telemedicine offers comparable clinical outcomes and high parental satisfaction for pediatric pre-anesthesia evaluations.
It enhances accessibility and convenience without compromising clinical quality.
Further investigation into optimizing telemedicine for specific assessments like airway evaluation is warranted.

Keywords:

feasibility pediatric pre‐anesthesia assessment randomized controlled trial satisfaction telemedicine