Trial reportANZ journal of surgery2022
Telemedicine versus face-to-face follow up in general surgery: a randomized controlled trial.
Trial report in ANZ journal of surgery, 2022. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 8 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
8 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 13 citations in OpenAlex.
- Digital Health Interventions and Patient Safety in Abdominal Surgery: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.JAMA network open · 2024Pooled it
- Article
- Feasibility of initial telemedicine follow-up after spinal fusion for AIS.European spine journal : official publication of the European Spine Society, the European Spinal Deformity Society, and the European Section of the Cervical Spine Research Society · 2026Article
- Practice Improvement Project: Developing a Platform for a Remote At-Home Preoperative Evaluation for Elective Noncardiac Procedures.Mayo Clinic proceedings. Innovations, quality & outcomes · 2025Article
- Metrics for Evaluating Telemedicine in Randomized Controlled Trials: Scoping Review.Journal of medical Internet research · 2025Article
- Patients and Provider Experiences with Telemedicine for Follow-up Care in Military Settings.Telemedicine reports · 2025Article
- Article
- The safety of telemedicine clinics as an alternative to in-person preoperative assessment for elective laparoscopic cholecystectomy in patients with benign gallbladder disease: a retrospective cohort study.Patient safety in surgery · 2023Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
5 authors at 2 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundTelemedicine provides healthcare to patients at a distance from their treating clinician. There is a lack of high-quality evidence to support the safety and acceptability of telemedicine for postoperative outpatient follow-up. This randomized controlled trial-conducted before the COVID-19 pandemic-aimed to assess patient satisfaction and safety (as determined by readmission, reoperation and complication rates) by telephone compared to face-to-face follow-up after uncomplicated general surgical procedures.
methodsPatients following laparoscopic appendicectomy or cholecystectomy and laparoscopic or open umbilical or inguinal hernia repairs were randomized to a telephone or face-to-face outpatient clinic. Patient demographics, perioperative details and postoperative outcomes were compared. Patient satisfaction was assessed via a standardized Likert-style scale.
resultsOne hundred and twenty-three patients were randomized over 12 months. Mean consultation times were significantly shorter for telemedicine than face-to-face clinics (telemedicine 10.52 ± 7.2 min, face-to-face 15.95 ± 9.96 min, P = 0.0021). There was no difference between groups in the attendance rates, nor the incidence or detection of postoperative complications. Of the 58 patients randomized to the telemedicine arm, 40% reported high, and 60% reported very high satisfaction with the method of clinic follow-up.
conclusionTelemedicine postoperative follow-up is safe and acceptable to patients and could be considered in patients undergoing uncomplicated benign general surgery.
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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.