Telehealth in Neurodegenerative Diseases: Opportunities and Challenges for Patients and Physicians.

Fabiola De Marchi,Letizia Mazzini,Elena Contaldi,Cristoforo Comi,Luca Magistrelli,Roberto Cantello

doi:10.3390/brainsci11020237

Fabiola De Marchi, Letizia Mazzini + Show 4 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci11020237

Copy DOI

Abstract

Telehealth, by definition, is distributing health-related services while using electronic technologies. This narrative Review describes the technological health services (telemedicine and telemonitoring) for delivering care in neurodegenerative diseases, Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s Disease, and amyotrophic lateral Sclerosis, among others. This paper aims to illustrate this approach’s primary experience and application, highlighting the strengths and weaknesses, with the goal of understanding which could be the most useful application for each one, in order to facilitate telehealth improvement and use in standard clinical practice. We also described the potential role of the COVID-19 pandemic to speed up this service’s use, avoiding a sudden interruption of medical care.

Highlights

Health-care provider, carer feasibility, changes in quality of life, satisfaction, motor performance, mood, cognition patients sent video recordings made in the home to the treating team via the Internet patients and a blind rater rated their Parkinson’s disease (PD) as improved from baseline change in quality of life not different in TC group; TM visits saved participant an average of 100 miles of travel and 3 h of time experience of support staff is an important source of dissatisfaction; most users continued with
This integrated review has shown the achievements of technology from several perspectives, thanks to the ease of application and reproducibility
To date, the use of technology is still too little developed, even though the COVID-19 pandemic can be considered as an unexpected opportunity to speed up clinical practice approval

Summary

Introduction

Publisher’s Note: MDPI stays neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations. Except for visits with urgent characteristics, the out-patient follow-up visits have been immediately suspended, inevitably generating a sense of loss and abandonment due to the lack of dedicated medical and psychological support In this context, the need to switch to alternatives types of care, including telemedicine and telehealth, is becoming mandatory in preventing a more significant functional decline. The need to switch to alternatives types of care, including telemedicine and telehealth, is becoming mandatory in preventing a more significant functional decline This narrative review aims to analyze and discuss the primary experience and applications of this approach in the three most represented NDDs (AD, PD, ALS) in order to facilitate telehealth improvement and use in standard clinical practice, highlighting the strengths and weaknesses, with the goal of understanding which could be the most useful application for each one. The present review emphasizes the management of telehealth resources before the COVID-19 outbreak, underlining how they changed with the ongoing pandemic emergency

Alzheimer’s Disease

MCI and

Parkinson’s Disease

Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis

Findings

Expert Opinions and Conclusions