Utility of Telehealth Platforms Applied to Burns Management: A Systematic Review

The financial burden of burn injuries has a considerable impact on patients and healthcare systems. Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) have demonstrated their utility in the improvement of clinical practice and healthcare systems. Because referral centres for burn injuries cover large...

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Detalles Bibliográficos
Autores: García Díaz, Antonio, Vilardell Roig, Lluis, Novillo Ortiz, David, Gacto Sánchez, Purificación, Pereyra-Rodríguez, José-Juan, Saigi Rubio, Francesc
Tipo de recurso: artículo
Estado:Versión publicada
Fecha de publicación:2023
País:España
Institución:Universidad de Sevilla (US)
Repositorio:idUS. Depósito de Investigación de la Universidad de Sevilla
OAI Identifier:oai:idus.us.es:11441/178003
Acceso en línea:https://hdl.handle.net/11441/178003
https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph20043161
Access Level:acceso abierto
Palabra clave:Telehealth
Remote consultation
Burns
Cost–benefit analysis
Descripción
Sumario:The financial burden of burn injuries has a considerable impact on patients and healthcare systems. Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) have demonstrated their utility in the improvement of clinical practice and healthcare systems. Because referral centres for burn injuries cover large geographic areas, many specialists must find new strategies, including telehealth tools for patient evaluation, teleconsultation, and remote monitoring. This systematic review was performed according to PRISMA guidelines. PubMed, Cochrane, Medline, IBECS, and LILACS were the search engines used. Systematic reviews, meta-analyses, clinical trials, and observational studies were included in the study search. The protocol was registered in PROSPERO with the number CRD42022361137. In total, 37 of 185 studies queried for this study were eligible for the systematic review. Thirty studies were comparative observational studies, six were systematic reviews, and one was a randomised clinical trial. Studies suggest that telehealth allows better perception of triage, more accurate estimation of the TBSA, and resuscitation measures in the management of acute burns. In addition, some studies assess that TH tools are equivalent to face-to-face outpatient visits and cost-efficient because of transport savings and unnecessary referrals. However, more studies are required to provide significant evidence. However, the implementation of telehealth should be specifically adapted to each territory.