Introduction
Since 1879, telemedicine has allowed consultations to occur remotely without face-to-face interactions between patients and clinicians.(1) It had been shown to be effective, efficient and cost-effective in various specialities.(2-7)
Due to the global COVID-19 pandemic, the use of telemedicine consultations had become an integral part of practice for various medical and surgical specialties, including otolaryngology, head and neck surgery (OHNS).(8)Otolaryngologists had been particularly at risk of contracting COVID-19 due to the higher viral load in the upper aerodigestive tract,(9) therefore the use of telemedicine had been especially important to enable ongoing safe patient care while minimising risk to clinicians.
Telemedicine consultations for OHNS patients provide additional challenges compared to other specialties due to the need for specialist examinations such as endoscopy which may not be performed by non-OHNS clinicians. Recent studies had shown good diagnostic concordance of telemedicine consultations in assessing OHNS patients when compared to face-to-face consultations,(8, 10-12) especially for OHNS conditions which are mainly diagnosed based on clinical history alone such as recurrent tonsillitis.
In most developed countries, the majority of otolaryngologists consult in metropolitan locations. Patients from regional or remote locations are therefore required to travel significant distances for specialist OHNS review.(13)Although various Australian state governments provide subsidy for travel costs incurred, the impact to patient care can often be significant, even prior to the COVID-19 pandemic.
There is currently a lack of studies in the literature evaluating the use of telemedicine for OHNS in regional Australia. This study aims to assess the diagnostic accuracy of telemedicine consultations in assessing OHNS patients compared to face-to-face consultations during the COVID-19 pandemic.