Background:
The Coronavirus pandemic outbreak in 2019 and the saturation of our healthcare system led to an increased use of digital tools for surveillance. In this study we describe our experience using telemedicine to follow-up IPMN patients during Covid-19 era and analyze those factors associated to patients’ satisfaction.
Methods:
This one-year retrospective observational study enrolled IPMN patients followed-up by telemedicine during COVID-19 outbreak. Patients with high-risk features needing on-site physical examination or declining remote follow-up were excluded.
A 13-question survey was conducted; demographic, geographic and employment information was collected. Univariate and multivariate analysis were performed to evaluate those factors associated to patients’ satisfaction.
Results:
Out of 287, a total of 177 IPMN patients were included: mean age was 69 (44-87) years, male/female ratio was 0.78. Eighty (45.2%) patients had previously experienced abdominal pain. Most patients (85.3%) were satisfied with telemedicine: at univariate analysis, age ≥ 70 years (p=0.007), retirement (p=0.001) and absence of previous abdominal pain (p=0.05) were significantly associated with patient satisfaction. At multivariate analysis, absence of previous abdominal pain was the only factor independently associated with patient satisfaction (OR 5.964, 95%CI 2.21-16.11, p<0.001).
Conclusions:
Telemedicine allows a new follow-up strategy that can be used in selected patients with IPMN. Absence of previous abdominal pain is associated with patient satisfaction during follow-up. Further studies are needed to evaluate safety of remote follow-up in IPMN patients
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