Aim: To evaluate the reliability of teleconsultations in following up patients with ophthalmic complaints during the COVID-19 lockdown.
Methods: This retrospective study was carried out on 298 eyes with different ophthalmic complaints at Ophthalmology department -King Hamad University Hospital –Bahrain from March 2020 to November 2020. Cases were divided into three groups: glaucoma, refractive errors with amblyopia, and retinal pathology patients' .Telephonic consultation were conducted during the pandemic and comparison in the clinical outcome before starting teleconsultation and after resuming in-person attendance to clinics was carried out.
Results: Regarding refractive error and amblyopia cases, Amblyopia improved in 38.7% of the cases while worsened in 22.6% of cases and rest of the cases had stationary course. In glaucoma patients, IOP (Intraocular pressure) increased Rt (right eye) 15.4 to 17, p value 0.003 and Lt (left eye) 16 to 17, p value 0.134 and RNFL (Retinal nerve fiber layer) decreased Rt 92.37 to 85.30, p value 0.001 and Lt 92.36 to 87.50, p value 0.03 . In retinal pathology cases, despite that 78% of the patients did not have any complain during the pandemic, these patients had Vitreous hemorrhage (15.7%), New NVEs (neovascularization elsewhere) (2.2%), Vitro-macular traction (1.1%), and Six (6.7%) patients required surgical intervention.
Conclusion: Tele-ophthalmology showed satisfactory results as a follow-up tool for patients with refractive errors, glaucoma and retinal diseases, allowing adherence in follow-ups despite the many restrictions imposed throughout the COVID-19 pandemic. However, physician judgment should be individualized and stage of the disease should be kept into consideration.