The usage, quality and relevance of information and communications technologies in patients with chronic urticaria: A UCARE study

et al. 2020

Allergy

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Introduction The COVID‐19 pandemic dramatically disrupts health care around the globe. The impact of the pandemic on chronic urticaria (CU) and its management are largely unknown. Aim To understand how CU patients are affected by the COVID‐19 pandemic; how specialists alter CU patient management; and the course of CU in patients with COVID‐19. Materials and Methods Our cross‐sectional, international, questionnaire‐based, multicenter UCARE COVID‐CU study assessed the impact of the pandemic on patient consultations, remote treatment, changes in medications, and clinical consequences. Results The COVID‐19 pandemic severely impairs CU patient care, with less than 50% of the weekly numbers of patients treated as compared to before the pandemic. Reduced patient referrals and clinic hours were the major reasons. Almost half of responding UCARE physicians were involved in COVID‐19 patient care, which negatively impacted on the care of urticaria patients. The rate of face‐to‐face consultations decreased by 62%, from 90% to less than half, whereas the rate of remote consultations increased by more than 600%, from one in 10 to more than two thirds. Cyclosporine and systemic corticosteroids, but not antihistamines or omalizumab, are used less during the pandemic. CU does not affect the course of COVID‐19, but COVID‐19 results in CU exacerbation in one of three patients, with higher rates in patients with severe COVID‐19. Conclusions The COVID‐19 pandemic brings major changes and challenges for CU patients and their physicians. The long‐term consequences of these changes, especially the increased use of remote consultations, require careful evaluation.

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The global impact of the COVID‐19 pandemic on the management and course of chronic urticaria

Kocatürk

Salman

et al. 2020

Allergy

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“…Previously, we reported that almost all CU patients have access to ICTs and most use these regularly for health and disease-related information . 19 Here, we found that most patients with CU were interested in the use of ICTs for receiving information, asking physicians, and communicating with other patients about urticaria. Of note, patients prefer different ICTs for these 3 purposes: web browsers for obtaining information; email for asking physicians; and WhatsApp for communicating with other patients.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 82%

“…Almost all CU patients used ICTs for obtaining health and disease-related information . 19 One-to many ICTs, specifically web browsers were most frequently used, and the high usage of web browsers by >75% of patients was consistent with other chronic diseases . 16 , 21 Interestingly, one-to-one ICTs such as email and WhatsApp were also held to be of high interest to patients who are looking for information on their urticaria.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 82%

“…To address this knowledge gap, the global network of Urticaria Centers of Reference and Excellence (UCAREs) 18 performed an international study and reported first results. 19 Specifically, we showed that virtually all CU patients included had access to ICTs and very often used these on a daily basis, mostly on a one-to-one and one-to-many basis. The use of ICTs for obtaining health and CU-specific information was extremely high in all countries analyzed, with web browsers being the preferred ICT platform.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 87%

“…The design and conduct of this study have been previously described in detail. 19 Briefly, this was an anonymous, cross-sectional survey study (see questionnaire in the supplement). Here, we included additional patients totaling 1841 from primary healthcare centers, university hospitals, and specialized clinics (either public or private) that belong to the UCARE network.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 2 more Smart Citations

How are patients with chronic urticaria interested in using information and communication technologies to guide their healthcare? A UCARE study

World Allergy Organization Journal

Vanegas

Chérrez

et al. 2021

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Background Patients with chronic urticaria (CU) are increasingly using information and communication technologies (ICTs) to manage their health. What CU patients expect from ICTs and which ICTs they prefer remains unknown. We assessed why CU patients use ICTs, which ones they prefer, and what drives their expectations and choices. Methods In this cross-sectional study, 1841 patients across 17 countries were recruited at UCAREs (Urticaria Centers of Reference and Excellence). Patients with CU who were >12 years old completed a 23-item questionnaire. Results Most patients were interested in receiving disease information (87.3%), asking physicians about CU (84.1%), and communicating with other patients through ICTs (65.6%). For receiving disease information, patients preferred one-to-one and one-to-many ICTs, especially web browsers. One-to-one ICTs were also the ICTs of choice for asking physicians about urticaria and for communicating with other patients, and e-mail and WhatsApp were the preferred ICTs, respectively. Many-to-many ICTs such as Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, and Twitter were least preferred for all 3 purposes. Living in rural areas and higher education were linked to higher odds of being interested in receiving disease information, asking physicians, and communicating with patients through ICTs. Conclusions Most patients and especially patients with higher education who live in rural areas are interested in using ICTs for their healthcare, but prefer different ICTs for different purposes, ie, web browsers for obtaining information, e-mail for asking physicians, and WhatsApp for communicating with other patients. Our findings may help to improve ICTs for CU.

Chronic urticaria patients are interested in apps to monitor their disease activity and control: A UCARE CURICT analysis

Clinical & Translational All

Vanegas

Chérrez

et al. 2021

Self Cite

Background Information/communication technologies such as mobile phone applications (apps) would enable chronic urticaria (CU) patients to self‐evaluate their disease activity and control. Yet, recently Antó et al (2021) reported a global paucity of such apps for patients with CU. In this analysis, we assessed patient interest in using apps to monitor CU disease activity and control using questions from the chronic urticaria information and communication technologies (CURICT) study. Methods The methodology for CURICT has been reported. Briefly, a 23‐item questionnaire was completed by 1841 CU patients from 17 UCAREs across 17 countries. Here, we analyzed patient responses to the CURICT questions on the use of apps for urticaria‐related purposes. Results As previously published, the majority of respondents had chronic spontaneous urticaria (CSU; 63%; 18% chronic inducible urticaria (CIndU) [CIndu]; 19% with both), were female (70%) and in urban areas (75%). Over half of patients were very/extremely interested in an app to monitor disease activity (51%) and control (53%), while only ∼1/10 were not. Patients with both urticaria types versus those with CSU only (odds ratio [OR], 1.36 [1.03–1.79]) and females versus males (OR [95% CI], 1.47 [1.17–1.85]) were more likely to be very to extremely interested in an app to assess disease control. Conclusions Overall, half of the patients with CU were very to extremely interested in using an app to assess their disease activity and control. Development of well‐designed apps, specific to disease types (CSU, CIndU, CSU + CIndU, etc), validated by experts across platforms would help improve the management and possibly outcomes of CU treatment while providing important patient information to be used in future research.