Use of Telemedicine for the Physical Examination of Children with Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders (FASD)

Background The Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders (FASD) are among the most prevalent causes of neurodevelopmental disorders. The diagnosis is based on assessment of prenatal alcohol exposure, specific physical features identified with a dysmorphology examination, and neurobehavioral assessment. Prompt diagnosis of affected children is necessary to provide early intervention services in a timely manner; however, the availability of diagnostic expertise is limited. We propose telemedicine as a valid and reliable mode by which the physical phenotype of FASD can be accurately assessed METHODS: We compared face to face (F2F) physical examinations of the 3 key facial features and the resulting physical phenotype of the Fetal alcohol syndrome (FAS) and partial FAS (pFAS), as well as 12 additional physical features seen more frequently in children with FAS than in the general population in 61 individuals with two different telemedicine (TM) methods. These included Zoom secure connection system (ZOOM), using a smart phone and a tablet Transportable Examination Station (TES) system using a precision camera and a laptop. We measured the percentages of agreement and the Cohen's K coefficient for each comparison. Results Agreements for most physical features and for the physical phenotype of FAS and pFAS were in the "almost perfect" range with some exceptions in the "substantial" range. Imprecision in measurement and subjectivity underlie lower agreement for some features, both F2F and using TM. We identified the optimal conditions for the F2F examinations in order to assure reliability using TM. Conclusions Telemedicine is a valid and reliable method for the examination of the physical features of FAS, that may contribute to greater access to an early diagnosis of FASD in children prenatally exposed to alcohol and/or with characteristic neurobehavioral deficits.