Abstract
Background: Electronic health (e-Health), refers to technologies that can be utilized to enhance patient care as well as collect and share health information. e-Health comprises several umbrella terms, including telehealth, mobile health, e-Health, wearables, and artificial intelligence. The types of e-Health technologies being utilized in lymphedema (LE) care are unknown.
Method: In this narrative review, a search of published research on the utilization of e-Health technologies in LE-related care was conducted.
Results: Five different types of e-Health modalities were found (robotics, artificial intelligence, electronic medical records, smart wearable devices, and instructive online information) spanning 14 use cases and 4 phases of care (preventative, diagnostic, assessment, and treatment phases). Broad e-Health utilization examples were found including robotic-assisted surgery to reduce the likelihood of LE after lymphadenectomy, machine learning to predict patients at risk of filarial-related LE, and a novel wearable device prototype designed to provide lymphatic drainage.
Conclusions: e-Health has reported merit in the prevention, diagnoses, assessment, and treatment of LE with utilization demonstrating cutting edge applicability of e-Health for achieving optimal patient care and outcomes. As technology continues to advance, additional research into the utilization of e-Health in LE care is warranted.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 331-340 |
| Number of pages | 10 |
| Journal | Telemedicine and e-Health |
| Volume | 30 |
| Issue number | 2 |
| Early online date | 2 Aug 2023 |
| DOIs | |
| Publication status | Published - 1 Feb 2024 |
Keywords
- artificial intelligence
- e-Health
- m-Health
- robotic surgery
- telehealth