title: Are dermatologists in private practice interested in teledermatological services?
abstract: Diagnosing dermatologic skin conditions can be difficult, especially in pigmented skin lesions. Therefore, the consultation of an expert via teledermatology could prove vital. For this purpose, a rapid transfer of medical data including high resolution images is essential. This transfer can be performed with a variety of modern telecommunication technologies, including ISDN, highspeed-ISDN, Internet, and Intranet. As the levels of both communication software and camera-systems can be quite different, our survey investigated the equipment of 84 dermatologists in private practice. A questionnaire was distributed on computer equipment, operating system software, and any image documentation systems used, as well as required telecommunications equipment and possible applications of tele-dermatology. This survey showed a response rate of 54% and proves that dermatologists in private practice are interested in telemedicine services. Most dermatologists surveyed use Windows 95 operating software and 74% have access to modern ISDN modems or PC-cards. Dermatologists currently prefer applications with low-tech communication hardware and software requirements. Consultation of dermatological centers was the favored application with 59%. Our survey clearly demonstrates that a high percentage of dermatologists in private practice would use tele-dermatology. In our experience, for the excellence of this service an image documentation system is essential to provide the tele-dermatological expert with standardized images with constant illumination.
authors.affiliation: Department of Dermatology, University of Regensburg, Germany. alexander.glaessl@klinik.uni-regensburg.de
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Glaessl
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Schiffner
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Walther
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Landthaler
authors.forename: W
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Stolz
mesh_terms: D003880:Dermatology; D005858:Germany; D007722:Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice; D006801:Humans; D011331:Private Practice; D019114:Remote Consultation; D012871:Skin Diseases / Q000175:diagnosis; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires