Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2021 Apr 13;50(1):24.
doi: 10.1186/s40463-021-00505-1.

Virtual Care in Rhinology

Kristine A Smith  1 , Andrew Thamboo  2 , Yvonne Chan  3 , Christopher J Chin  4 , Megan Werger  5 , Brian Rotenberg  6
Affiliations

Virtual Care in Rhinology

Kristine A Smith et al. J Otolaryngol Head Neck Surg. .

Abstract

Background: The SARS-CoV-2 (COVID) pandemic has resulted in an increase in virtual care. While some specialties are well suited to virtual care, Otolaryngology - Head and Neck Surgery could be limited due to reliance on physical examination and nasal endoscopy, including Rhinology. It is likely virtual care will remain integrated for the foreseeable future and it is important to determine the strengths and weaknesses of this treatment modality for rhinology.

Methods: A survey on virtual care in rhinology was distributed to 61 Canadian rhinologists. The primary objective was to determine how virtual care compared to in-person care in each area of a typical appointment. Other areas focused on platforms used to deliver virtual care and which patients could be appropriately assessed by virtual visits.

Results: 43 participants responded (response rate 70.5%). The majority of participants use the telephone as their primary platform. History taking and reviewing results (lab work, imaging) were reported to be equivalent in virtual care. Non-urgent follow up and new patients were thought to be the most appropriate for virtual care. The inability to perform exams and nasal endoscopy were reported to be significant limitations.

Conclusion: It is important to understand the strengths and limitations of virtual care. These results identify the perceived strengths and weaknesses of virtual care in rhinology, and will help rhinologists understand the role of virtual care in their practices.

Keywords: COVID-19; Coronavirus; Rhinology; Virtual care.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare that they have no competing interests.

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
Chief Complaints: Virtual versus In-person visits
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. Cucinotta D, Vanelli M. WHO declares COVID-19 a pandemic. Acta Biomed. 2020;91(1):157–160. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Olayiwola JN, Magana C, Harmon A, Nair S, Esposito E, Harsh C, et al. Telehealth as a bright spot of the COVID-19 pandemic: recommendations from the virtual frontlines ("Frontweb") JMIR Public Health Surveill. 2020;6(2):e19045. doi: 10.2196/19045. - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Flodgren G, Rachas A, Farmer AJ, Inzitari M, Shepperd S. Interactive telemedicine: effects on professional practice and health care outcomes. Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2015;9:CD002098. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Kmucha S. Telemedicine and physician liability issues. Ear Nose Throat J. 2020:145561320928207. - PubMed
    1. Setzen M, Svider PF, Setzen S, Setzen G, Eloy JA, Johnson AP. The novel corona virus and rhinology: impact on practice patterns and future directions. Am J Otolaryngol. 2020;41(6):102569. doi: 10.1016/j.amjoto.2020.102569. - DOI - PMC - PubMed

MeSH terms