Patient's Perception of Digital Symptom Assessment Technologies in Rheumatology: Results From a Multicentre Study.

An increasing number of digital tools, including dedicated diagnostic decision support systems (DDSS) exist to better assess new symptoms and understand when and where to seek medical care. The aim of this study was to evaluate patient's previous online assessment experiences and to compare the acceptability, usability, usefulness and potential impact of artificial intelligence (AI)-based symptom checker (Ada) and an online questionnaire-based self-referral tool (Rheport). Patients newly presenting to three German secondary rheumatology outpatient clinics were randomly assigned in a 1:1 ratio to complete consecutively Ada or Rheport in a prospective non-blinded multicentre controlled crossover randomized trial. DDSS completion time was recorded by local study personnel and perceptions on DDSS and previous online assessment were collected through a self-completed study questionnaire, including usability measured with the validated System Usability Scale (SUS). 600 patients (median age 52 years, 418 women) were included. 277/600 (46.2%) of patients used an online search engine prior to the appointment. The median time patients spent assessing symptoms was 180, 7, and 8 min, respectively using online using search engines, Ada and Rheport. 111/275 (40.4%), 266/600 (44.3%) and 395/600 (65.8%) of patients rated the respective symptom assessment as very helpful or helpful, using online search engines, Ada and Rheport, respectively. Usability of both diagnostic decision support systems (DDSS) was "good" with a significantly higher mean SUS score (SD) of Rheport 77.1/100 (16.0) compared to Ada 74.4/100 (16.8), ( In summary, patients increasingly assess their symptoms independently online, however only a minority used dedicated symptom assessment websites or DDSS. DDSS, such as Ada an Rheport are easy to use, well accepted among patients with musculoskeletal complaints and could replace online search engines for patient symptom assessment, potentially saving time and increasing helpfulness.

Informations de copyright

Copyright © 2022 Knitza, Muehlensiepen, Ignatyev, Fuchs, Mohn, Simon, Kleyer, Fagni, Boeltz, Morf, Bergmann, Labinsky, Vorbrüggen, Ramming, Distler, Bartz-Bazzanella, Vuillerme, Schett, Welcker and Hueber.

Déclaration de conflit d'intérêts

JK and has received research support from Novartis Pharma GmbH. Qinum and RheumaDatenRhePort developed and hold rights for Rheport. WV, PB-B, and MW are members of RheumaDatenRhePort. WV and PB-B were involved in the development of Rheport. JK is a member of the scientific board of RheumaDatenRhePort. The remaining authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest.