Teleheath appointments for dermatologic diseases may improve accessibility and accelerate diagnoses for patients with melanoma, according to an article published in Managed Healthcare Executive summarizing findings presented by Jaklitsch et al at the 2023 AAD Annual Meeting. Experts explained that teledermatology—requiring patients to send photographs of the affected skin areas to dermatologists to assess—may offer simplified and real-time consultations and shorten the wait time for results. In a new retrospective study, investigators compared 35 melanoma cases diagnosed through teledermatology with 800 cases diagnosed through in-person visits, and discovered that the time to biopsy for patients who consulted dermatologists via teledermatology was 13 days vs 82 days for patients visiting their providers in-person. Additionally, the investigators noted that most patients who sought teledermatology had darker skin tones, representing an underserved population in melanoma research. The investigators emphasized that the shortened wait times seen with teledermatology demonstrated an ability to diagnose and potentially administer life-saving treatment for high-risk melanoma cases much sooner.
May 24, 2023