ArticlePLOS digital health2025
Patient and clinician perceptions of telehealth in musculoskeletal physiotherapy services - A systematic review of the evidence-base.
Article in PLOS digital health, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 2 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
2 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it.
- Barriers and facilitators to the use of virtual wards: a systematic review of the qualitative evidence.International journal for quality in health care : journal of the International Society for Quality in Health Care · 2025Pooled it
- Acceptability of Telehealth Physical Therapy in Adults with Chronic Low Back Pain: A Multivariable Analysis of Knowledge, Attitudes, Barriers, and Biopsychosocial Health Factors.Healthcare (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
2 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
Telehealth has been at the forefront of healthcare delivery since the Covid-19 pandemic with a prompt shift in transition from face-to-face delivery to remote contact. This critical review aims to understand patient and clinician views of telehealth adoption regarding effectiveness and satisfaction within musculoskeletal (MSK) physiotherapy services. A systematic process was used to search for evidence within 6 databases (CINAHL, PyscINFO, Medline, AMED, EMCARE, EMBASE) utilising clear inclusion and exclusion criteria in August 2024. Articles published in English between 2019-2024 were searched, a total of 394 articles were identified and 10 articles were included in the review. Methodological quality was evaluated using the CASP, JBI and QuADS tools. Findings were evaluated via consensus and showed clear patient and clinician satisfaction with positive themes of reduced travel, reduced physical burden, flexibility/accessibility and negative themes of reduced physical contact, computer literacy and privacy infringements. Quality analysis identified non-response bias, sampling bias, and participants mix as risks to overall validity. Telehealth has shown to be an effective and transformative model of healthcare delivery for musculoskeletal services, especially in improving access and convenience for patients. Implications for practice suggest a need for a hybrid model of care, enhanced training, and improved data security. Future research should focus on satisfaction within condition specific musculoskeletal health, overall cost-effectiveness, health equity, and the integration of advanced technologies to ensure telehealth can be a sustainable and inclusive part of the healthcare landscape moving forwards.
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
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.