A joint research group of 19 domestic institutions including Keio University, Osaka Medical and Pharmaceutical University, Kyoto Prefectural University of Medicine, and Kobe University found that online psychiatric consultations have the same therapeutic effects as face-to-face consultations.
According to a research group, 199 patients with depression, anxiety, and obsessive-compulsive disorders were divided into a group that received medical treatment by a doctor via video call, a group that combined online and face-to-face consultation, and a group that received only face-to-face consultation. For the first time, a method called a non-inferiority trial was used to compare treatment effects.
The results confirmed that there was no difference in treatment efficacy between the two groups in terms of the primary endpoint. No significant differences were found between the two groups in secondary endpoints such as disease severity and satisfaction. On the other hand, when combined with online medical treatment, it was possible to shorten hospital visit time and reduce hospital costs.
Psychiatric treatment differs from internal medicine and surgery, in that dialogue with the doctor constitutes a large part of the treatment. For this reason, it is considered to be more compatible with online medical treatment than other departments.
The research group believes that this data has been scientifically proven to have a therapeutic effect on online consultations, which have not necessarily been widely used, and hopes that this data will be used as a reference for policy considerations toward the spread of online consultations.
