Telemedicine – chances and challenges for medical genetics in Germany

2021 ◽  
Vol 33 (1) ◽  
pp. 53-59
Author(s):  
Johanna Tecklenburg

Abstract Telemedicine has been in practical use for many years, mostly within the context of model projects. The current Covid-19 pandemic has accelerated the process of implementing telemedicine in standard care. Numerous regulations, as well as complex reimbursement structures play a role in the application of telemedicine in medical genetics in Germany. Discipline- and technology-specific challenges complicate the integration of technical solutions into the medical genetic practice. In previous studies teleconsultations and virtual consultations in medical genetics have proven their value as indicated by high levels of satisfaction in the users and showing no inferiority to in-person consultation in terms of psychosocial outcome. The next years will bring an increasing demand for genetic counseling that can hardly be met by the limited number of specialists in Germany. In this context telemedicine can help to close these gaps in standard care while strengthening the field by ensuring comprehensive medical genetic care. The German medical genetics community is asked to actively shape the process of implementation by defining areas of genetic counseling that are suitable for telemedicine, by regulating access for physicians and by contributing to the renumeration structures.

Author(s):  
В.А. Румянцева ◽  
Е.В. Заклязьминская

Анализ результатов 10-летней работы лаборатории медицинской генетики показал необходимость развития новых отраслей генетики для формирования персонализированной медицины в России. Совершенствование медико-генетической службы на базе многопрофильного хирургического центра дает большие преимущества в развитии семейных обследований. The analysis of last 10 years work experience of medical genetics laboratory has shown the need for the development of new branches of genetics for the formation of personalized medicine in Russia. The improvement of the medical genetic services at the multidisciplinary surgical center provides great advantages in the development of family examinations.


PEDIATRICS ◽  
1969 ◽  
Vol 44 (3) ◽  
pp. 467-467
Author(s):  
Hans Zellweger

This small paperback appeared as Volume 42 in the series, Heidelberg Pocket Books (a translation of L. S. Penrose's Introduction to Human Genetics is Volume 4 of the same series). The authors, both directors of a German institute for human genetics, wrote this syllabus to familiarize the genetically uninformed physician with the common and practical aspects of medical genetics and genetic counseling. They advise the reader to consult a professional geneticist for more complicated genetic problems.


2019 ◽  
Vol 28 (3) ◽  
pp. 184-192
Author(s):  
Elena Meishan Lee ◽  
Archana Ramaswamy Vasudevan ◽  
Ian Yew Jin Wee ◽  
Serene Dingju Yeow ◽  
Vinh Thuc Uyen Dinh

Background: Increasing demand for follow-up of rheumatoid arthritis has encouraged pharmacists to collaborate with physicians to assist with patient care. Objective: The aim of this study was to assess the effectiveness and safety of the collaborative care model in a rheumatoid arthritis clinic. Methods: We performed a retrospective review of patient case notes and medication records from March 2013 to February 2016. The effectiveness and safety of collaborative care was examined in pre-implementation (standard care) versus post-implementation (collaborative care) cohorts. All patients were assessed for 12 months. Effectiveness of clinic was measured using the percentage of patients that achieved optimal doses of non-biologic disease-modifying anti-rheumatic drugs (nb-DMARDs). Clinic safety performance was evaluated based on the percentage of patients in each cohort that achieved compliance to in-house hospital guidelines on nb-DMARD monitoring. Other clinic safety factors monitored included the incidence and characteristics of nb-DMARD-associated adverse drug events. Results: Thirty-eight patients who had received standard care and collaborative care were reviewed. More patients receiving collaborative care achieved nb-DMARD dose optimization within a year of initiation of therapy (68.4% vs 39.5%; p-value < 0.05). Compliance to safety recommendations from hospital guidelines on nb-DMARD monitoring was significantly higher in the collaborative care group (70.6% vs 44.1%; p-value < 0.05). Collaborative care resulted in a higher incidence of nb-DMARD-associated adverse drug events being detected (26.3% vs 18.4%; p-value < 0.05). The most common adverse drug events were gastrointestinal (29.4%), dermatological (17.6%), and hematologic (17.6%), the majority being mild in severity. Conclusion: Collaborative rheumatoid arthritis care contributed to improvements in nb-DMARD dose optimization, compliance to hospital guidelines on monitoring, and the detection of nb-DMARD-related adverse drug events.


2019 ◽  
Vol 21 (10) ◽  
pp. 2404-2404
Author(s):  
Jill S. Goldman ◽  
Susan E. Hahn ◽  
Jennifer Williamson Catania ◽  
Susan LaRusse-Eckert ◽  
Melissa Barber Butson ◽  
...  

2009 ◽  
Vol 152A (1) ◽  
pp. 147-152 ◽  
Author(s):  
M.J. Hunter ◽  
Catriona Hippman ◽  
William G. Honer ◽  
Jehannine C. Austin

2015 ◽  
Vol 28 (3) ◽  
pp. 489-513 ◽  
Author(s):  
Maria Björkman

ArgumentThis paper examines the intertwined relations between eugenics and medical genetics from a Swedish perspective in the 1940s and 1950s. The Swedish case shows that a rudimentary form of genetic counseling emerged within eugenic practices in the applications of the Swedish Sterilization Act of 1941, here analyzed from the phenomenon of “heredophobia” (ärftlighetsskräck). At the same time genetic counseling also existed outside eugenic practices, within the discipline of medical genetics. The paper argues that a demand for genetic counseling increased in the 1940s and 1950s in response to a sense of reproductive responsibility engendered by earlier eugenic discourse. The paper also questions the claim made by theoreticians of biopolitics that biological citizens have emerged only during the last decades, especially in neoliberal societies. From the Swedish case it is possible to argue that this had already happened earlier in relation to the proliferation of various aspects of eugenics to the public.


Author(s):  
И.В. Анисимова

Задержка психического развития (ЗПР) и умственная отсталость (УО) являются частыми симптомами у пациентов, консультируемых врачом-генетиком. Цель исследования: оценка структуры и разнообразия нозологических форм ЗПР и УО и их динамики среди пациентов, проконсультированных в ФГБНУ МГНЦ. Работа выполнена на материале, извлеченном из медико-генетических карт пациентов, проконсультированных врачами-генетиками консультативного и научно-консультативного отделов в 2006 и 2007 годах и через 10 лет -в 2016 и 2017 годах. Общее число обработанных медико-генетических карт за 4 анализируемых года составило 14301 по всем нозологиям, общее число карт пациентов с ЗПР или УО за 4 года составило 2321 карту. Общее количество пациентов с ЗПР или УО за 4 года составило 2350, при этом доли пациентов с ЗПР или УО, проконсультированных в 2016-2017 годах, достоверно увеличились по сравнению с долями таких пациентов, проконсультированных в 2006-2007 годах. В исследуемые периоды структура ЗПР и УО осталась практически неизменной по таким критериям, как пол и возраст. Доли пациентов с ЗПР и УО, обусловленными факторами окружающей среды и генетическими причинами, также не претерпели изменений. Наблюдается значительное увеличение числа пациентов с ЗПР или УО в 2016 и 2017 гг. с диагнозом, подтвержденным биохимическими, молекулярно-генетическими или цитогенетическими методами. Количество нозологических форм ЗПР и УО, подтвержденных молекулярно-генетическими или цитогенетическими методами, возросло почти в 5 раз за исследуемый десятилетний период. Существенное увеличение числа пациентов с лабораторно верифицированными генетическими формами ЗПР или УО в 2016 и 2017 годах обусловлено значительным прогрессом в области ДНК-диагностики синдромов, включающих ЗПР и УО, а также появлением новых методов исследований: хромосомного микроматричного анализа и секвенирования нового поколения. Background: Developmental delay (DD) and intellectual disability (ID) are frequent symptoms in patients consulted by a geneticist. Purpose of the research: evaluation of the structure and variety of nosological forms of DD and ID and their dynamics among patients consulted by geneticists of the counseling unit and research and counseling department of the Research Centre for Medical Genetics in 2006, 2007, 2016 and 2017. Materials and methods: The present work was performed on the material taken from the medical genetic cards of patients of the Research Centre for Medical Genetics consulted by geneticists of the counseling unit and research and counseling department in 2006 and 2007 and 10 years later in 2016 and 2017. The total number of medical genetic cards processed during the 4 analyzed years was 14301 for all nosologies; the total number of cards of patients with DD or ID during the 4 years was 2321 cards. The total number of patients with DD or ID over the 4 analyzed years was 2350. Meanwhile the proportions of patients with DD or ID consulted in 2016-2017 increased significantly compared to the proportions of such patients consulted in 2006-2007. Results: During the research period (2006, 2007, 2016, and 2017) the structure of DD and ID remained almost unchanged for criteria such as gender and age. The proportions of patients with DD or ID caused by environmental factors and genetic causes also did not change. There was a significant increase in the number of patients with DD or ID in 2016 and 2017 with a diagnosis confirmed by biochemical, molecular genetic or cytogenetic methods. The number of nosological forms of PD and OA confirmed by molecular genetic or cytogenetic methods increased almost 5-fold over the ten-year period research. Conclusions: The significant increase in the number of patients with laboratory verified genetic forms of DD or ID in 2016 and 2017 is explained by significant advances in DNA diagnostics of syndromes manifesting in DD or ID, as well as the appearance of new research methods - chromosome microarray analysis and next-generation sequencing.


2013 ◽  
Vol 2013 ◽  
pp. 1-5 ◽  
Author(s):  
Emma Colao ◽  
Teresa Granata ◽  
Marco F. M. Vismara ◽  
Francesco Bombardiere ◽  
Donatella Nocera ◽  
...  

Objective. To assess aetiology of a POF in a 33-year-old woman and, if possible, plan a cure.Design. Case report.Setting. medical genetics diagnostic unit in a university hospital.Patient. A 33-year-old woman with premature ovarian failure (POF).Intervention(s). Genetic counseling, karyotyping, FISH study.Result(s). Turner-like diagnosis.Conclusion(s). Most cases of POF remain idiopathic. Turner syndrome can occur in very different phenotypes; cytogenetic and molecular profiling can provide a definitive diagnosis in cases with nonclassical phenotype.


Author(s):  
Е.А. Алексеева ◽  
К.О. Карандашева ◽  
О.В. Бабенко ◽  
В.М. Козлова ◽  
Т.Л. Ушакова ◽  
...  

Введение. Спорадическая ретинобластома развивается в результате мутаций de novo в обоих аллелях гена RB1 в клетках сетчатки глаза. При спорадической ретинобластоме первоначальная мутация в гене RB1 нередко является мозаичной, то есть образуется в постзиготической ранней эмбриональной клетке, что приводит к неравномерному распределению мутантных клонов между различными тканями организма. Возможность идентифицировать мозаичный вариант мутации в гене RB1 имеет значение как для медико-генетического консультирования, так и для клинического ведения пациентов, поскольку мозаицизм влияет на развитие клинической картины заболевания, риск развития опухоли в другом глазу и других опухолей и на риск передачи мутации следующему поколению. Цель: установить частоту и спектр постзиготических мозаичных мутаций в гене RB1 в выборке больных со спорадической ретинобластомой, определить содержание мутантного аллеля в образцах с мозаицизмом. Метод. Исследование проведено на материале ДНК лимфоцитов крови больных со спорадической ретинобластомой. Скрининг точковых мутаций, малых инсерций/делеций в гене RВ1 осуществляли методом полупроводникового высокопроизводительного параллельного секвенирования (ВПС). Исключение протяженных делеций в гене RВ1 проводили методом MLPA. Для поиска мозаичных мутаций с очень низким содержанием (менее 10%) мутантного аллеля был разработан и проведен углубленный анализ данных ВПС, основанный на биоинформатических и статистических подходах. Для верификации выявленных мозаичных патогенных мутаций использовали секвенирование ДНК по Сэнгеру. Результаты. В исследованной выборке больных со спорадической унилатеральной формой ретинобластомы мозаичные мутации встречаются чаще, чем при спорадической билатеральной форме; различия статистически достоверны. В то же время, частоты мозаичных мутаций с высокой и низкой представленностью мутантных аллелей между группами больных с унилатеральной и билатеральной ретинобластомой достоверно не различаются. Все мозаичные мутации, представлены нуль-аллелями; мозаичных миссенс-мутаций в нашей выборке не обнаружено. Не выявлено мозаичных мутаций в 1-м и 2-м экзонах гена RB1, расположенных проксимальнее альтернативного промотора, импринтинг которого определяет пенетрантность мутаций в зависимости от родительского происхождения мутантного аллеля. Заключение. Применение глубокого ВПС в сочетании с усовершенствованным алгоритмом анализа результатов, направленным на выявление мозаичных мутаций, повышает эффективность ДНК-диагностики ретинобластомы, способствуя совершенствованию медико-генетического консультирования и лечения больных. Background. Sporadic retinoblastoma develops as a result of de novo mutations in both alleles of the RB1 gene. Often in sporadic retinoblastoma, the initial mutation in RB1 is mosaic, that is, it is formed in a postzygotic, early embryonic cell, which leads to an uneven distribution of mutant clones between different tissues of the body. The ability to identify a mosaic variant of a mutation in the RB1 gene is important for both medical genetic counseling and clinical management of patients, since mosaicism affects the development of the clinical picture of the disease, the risk of developing a tumor in the other eye, as well as other tumors, and the risk of mutation transmission to the next generation. Aim: to establish the frequency and spectrum of somatic mosaic mutations in the RB1 gene in patients with sporadic retinoblastoma and to quantify the content of the mutant allele in cases with mosaicism. Methods. The study was carried out on the DNA of blood lymphocytes from patients with sporadic retinoblastoma. Screening of point mutations, small insertions/deletions in the RB1 gene was performed by semiconductor high-throughput parallel sequencing (NGS). Exclusion of gross deletions in the RB1 gene was performed by MLPA. To search for mosaic mutations with a very low representation (less than 10%) of the mutant allele, an in-depth analysis of the NGS data was developed an in-house algorithm based on bioinformatic and statistical approaches. To verify mosaic pathogenic mutations identified with NGS, Sanger sequencing was used. Results. Mosaic mutations were found more common among patients with sporadic unilateral form of retinoblastoma than in those with sporadic bilateral form; the differences are statistically significant. At the same time, the frequencies of mosaic mutations with a high and low representation of mutant alleles between the groups of patients with unilateral and bilateral retinoblastoma did not differ significantly. All mosaic mutations are null alleles; mosaic missense mutations were not found in our patients’ cohort. No mosaic mutations were detected in the 1st and 2nd exons of the RB1 gene, located proximal to the alternative promoter, the imprinting of which determines the penetrance of mutations depending on the parental origin of the mutant allele. Conclusion. The use of deep high-throughput parallel sequencing in combination with an improved algorithm for analyzing the NGS results, aimed at identifying mosaic mutations, increases the efficiency of DNA diagnostics of retinoblastoma, contributing to the improvement of medical genetic counseling and treatment of patients.


PEDIATRICS ◽  
1963 ◽  
Vol 32 (5) ◽  
pp. 854-854
Author(s):  
DAVID W. SMITH

Dr. Reed has presented genetic counseling in a manner which should be easily understood. He assumes the reader knows little genetics and he utilizes only the most common and essential genetic terminology. The material is presented in an open, often lighthearted fashion, and the necessary facts are interlaced with philosophical and personal commentary. The simple points are stressed along with the pitfalls, resulting in a very practical text for the clinician of today.


Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document