Telemedicine Video Follow-Up for Bariatric Surgery Patients: What Do Patients Prefer? A Prepandemic Pilot Randomized Clinical Trial

Abstract

While the safety of video follow-up in bariatric surgery is established, patients’ perception of telemedicine visits remained unknown. A randomized clinical trial evaluating patients’ perception of video postoperative follow-up (F/U) visits was conducted in the pre COVID-19 era. 24 patients were randomized in the preoperative clinic to receive either in-person or video F/U, and then surveyed about their experience and preference. The majority reported that if they had to do it over, they would prefer a video visit. Among those who received video visits, 11/12 reported that the lack of physical contact was acceptable. 82% of the video group expressed that their visit was better or as good as an in-person visit, while 9% were not sure, and 9% reported that video was worse. This finding suggests that postoperative video follow-up visits are acceptable among bariatric surgery patients and should be offered as an alternative to traditional visits.