Telemedicine on the follow-up management of early referral patients with inflammatory arthritis in a limited-resource clinical setting

IF 1.5 Q4 RHEUMATOLOGY

Reumatologia Clinica Pub Date : 2025-11-01 Epub Date: 2025-09-11 DOI:10.1016/j.reuma.2025.501968

David Vega-Morales , Valeria Alexsandra Fernández-Garza , Lourdes Gil-Flores , Delia Raquel López-Castillo , Alondra Elizabeth Montoya-Montes , Alain Nigel Michele Granados-Silva

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引用次数: 0

Abstract

Introduction and objectives

Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a chronic inflammatory disease that requires continuous monitoring to optimize treatment outcomes and prevent long-term disability. Telemedicine has emerged as a promising strategy to improve access and continuity of care. This study aimed to evaluate the use of telemedicine as a follow-up tool in patients with newly diagnosed RA.

Material and methods

We conducted a prospective, observational study in patients with recent-onset RA recruited from an early arthritis detection program between May and November 2023. Following baseline in-person evaluation, patients were enrolled in a telemonitoring protocol consisting of two scheduled video consultations at 6 and 12 months. Clinical outcomes were assessed at each visit using the Health Assessment Questionnaire (HAQ), the Clinical Disease Activity Index (CDAI), and patient-reported joint counts.

Results

A total of 34 patients were included (94.1% female, mean age 48.2 ± 8.9 years). At 6 and 12 months, 88.2% and 73.5% of patients completed their respective teleconsultations. Statistically significant improvements were observed in all clinical parameters: HAQ scores decreased from 0.87 to 0.50, CDAI from 23.5 to 12.0, TJC decreased from 10.5 to 3.4, SJC from 1.48 to 1.15, and EVA from 5.7 to 3.69.

Discussion and conclusion

Telemedicine proved to be an effective follow-up strategy for patients with newly diagnosed RA, showing significant improvements in functional status, pain, and disease activity over time. This approach may represent a valuable complement to in-person care in early RA management.

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在资源有限的临床环境中，远程医疗对炎性关节炎早期转诊患者的随访管理

类风湿性关节炎（RA）是一种慢性炎症性疾病，需要持续监测以优化治疗效果并预防长期残疾。远程医疗已成为改善护理可及性和连续性的一种有前景的战略。本研究旨在评估远程医疗作为新诊断RA患者随访工具的使用情况。材料和方法我们在2023年5月至11月从早期关节炎检测项目中招募的新发RA患者中进行了一项前瞻性观察性研究。在基线现场评估之后，患者参加了一个远程监测方案，包括6个月和12个月的两次预定视频会诊。使用健康评估问卷（HAQ）、临床疾病活动指数（CDAI）和患者报告的关节计数对每次就诊的临床结果进行评估。结果共纳入34例患者，其中女性94.1%，平均年龄48.2±8.9岁。在6个月和12个月时，88.2%和73.5%的患者完成了各自的远程咨询。所有临床参数均有统计学显著改善：HAQ评分从0.87降至0.50，CDAI从23.5降至12.0，TJC从10.5降至3.4，SJC从1.48降至1.15，EVA从5.7降至3.69。讨论与结论：对于新诊断的RA患者，远程医疗被证明是一种有效的随访策略，随着时间的推移，远程医疗在功能状态、疼痛和疾病活动方面都有显著改善。这种方法可能是早期RA治疗中面对面护理的一个有价值的补充。

本文章由计算机程序翻译，如有差异，请以英文原文为准。

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来源期刊

Reumatologia Clinica RHEUMATOLOGY-

CiteScore

2.40

自引率

6.70%

发文量

105

审稿时长

54 days

期刊介绍： Una gran revista para cubrir eficazmente las necesidades de conocimientos en una patología de etiología, expresividad clínica y tratamiento tan amplios. Además es La Publicación Oficial de la Sociedad Española de Reumatología y del Colegio Mexicano de Reumatología y está incluida en los más prestigiosos índices de referencia en medicina.