Patients with atopic dermatitis who participated in a direct-access online model for delivering following-up care achieved equivalent improvements in disease severity compared with those whose disease was managed through in-person visits, according to a study of 156 children and adults published in JAMA Dermatology (doi:10.1001/jamadermatol.2014.2299).
As assessed by patient-oriented eczema measure (POEM) and investigator global assessment (IGA), patients in the direct-access online group whose disease was managed through the direct-access online model over the 12-month study period improved their POEM scores from a mean (SD) baseline of 13.04 (5.32) to 7.94 (4.55) at 12 months.
Dr. April W. Armstrong of the University of Colorado, Denver, and her associates noted that the direct-access online specialty-care delivery model used in the study could be used for other chronic conditions where regular access to specialists is critical to patient outcomes, such as psoriasis and wound management.
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