What is Telemedicine and How is it Relevant to Neuro-Ophthalmology?

Telemedicine is not a separate discipline but rather a description of techniques and processes used to facilitate communication amongst healthcare professionals as well as between a remote provider and a patient. While the majority of current telemedicine efforts are very image-dependent, much wider deployment of teleconsultation may be accomplished either in real time or by store-and-forward technologies. The impending shortage of neuro-ophthalmologists may be addressed in part by making better use of telemedicine to expand the reach of our specialty and allow more more effective triage of referred patients, increasing the yield of 'positive' cases that present in person for evaluation.