The potential of telemedicine for dermatological care of pediatric patients in Germany

Abstract

SummaryBackground and ObjectivesSkin diseases are a common reason for consultations in pediatric practice. The present study aims to characterize the dermatological requests of resident pediatric specialists using teledermatology in Germany.Patients and MethodsThis analysis of consultation requests, submitted by pediatricians to a designated pediatric dermatologist via a telemedical consultation system (PädExpert) using the store‐and‐forward technology, was performed between February 2021 and December 2021.ResultsThe study analysis included 504 telemedical consultation requests. The mean age of the patients was 6.5 ± 5.0 years with 45.5% of the patients being female. Telemedicine was useful in providing a definite diagnosis in 88.3%. The diagnoses were most frequently assigned to the group of infectious skin diseases (28.8%). Referral to a dermatologist was recommended in 11.5%. The requests were answered on the same day in 63.8% of the cases.ConclusionsThe study data shows the great potential of teledermatology to improve access for children with skin diseases to specialized dermatological care. Another advantage is its function as a triage instrument. Since most cases could be managed by teledermatology only, it is possible to reduce the need for an in‐person visit to the dermatologist, thus saving resources.