Possibility of Telemedicine in Dental Anesthesia

Abstract

  Telemedicine is defined as the promotion of health and medical practices using information communication technologies. Telemedicine is expected to reduce the number of patients who are unable to receive appropriate medical care because of the shortage of medical doctors and to resolve the difficulty of providing medical treatments during home visits to patients living in rural areas. Teleanesthesia refers to the need for telemonitoring by remote anesthesiologists to support general anesthesia being provided by doctors or nurses in areas experiencing a shortage of anesthesiologists. Many reports have described its usefulness in both Japan and abroad. We have developed a telemonitoring system that uses a small device for measuring vital signs, which we have included in the systemic management of patients in dental clinics and home-visit dental treatments. Although telemonitoring by dental anesthesiologists is a clinically applicable method that is expected to contribute to improving patient safety, there are some unresolved issues. In particular, appropriate management for patients who suddenly experience medical emergencies is a top priority issue, as remote dental anesthesiologists cannot treat these patients directly. Hence, it is essential to include telemedicine modules in dental anesthesiology education for on-site dental service providers to facilitate emergency medical treatment for these patients.