News reports from the conference

Telemedicine effective for screening for retinopathy of prematurity (ROP)

Initial results from the only telemedicine program to remotely screen for retinopathy of prematurity (ROP) in Canada, shows this approach can be used successfully with significant cost savings and reductions in hospital transfers.

The two-year experience of the telemedicine network based at the Hospital for Sick Children in Toronto was presented here by pediatric ophthalmologist Dr. Nasrin Najm-Tehrani.

She presented data on 60 premature infants who received a total of 106 sequential examinations at two remote hospital sites in Sudbury (n = 46) and Barrie (n = 14), Ontario. Using a portable retina camera and computer hookup, two pediatric ophthalmologists and imaging experts in Toronto were able to conduct live video examinations and review stored images.

In this initial cohort, no infants developed ROP severe enough to require referral to the Hospital for Sick Children and there were no instances in which reimaging was required because of inadequate image quality. Najm-Tehrani said that an assessment of the first 18 months of the Sudbury program showed that eliminating the need to transfer neonates for screening saved an estimated $750,000.

She said that a survey of the parents of the children who underwent the screening showed a high degree of satisfaction with the process because of the convenience of having the screening done in their own community. There were virtually no concerns about the confidentiality of the data.