305 Augmented reality supported medication adherence for patients with atopic dermatitis and psoriasis

• Published in: British journal of dermatology (1951) 2023-01, Vol.188 (Supplement_2)
• Main Authors: Deiss, Yannick R, Korkut, Safak, Inglese, Terry, Laurenzi, Emanuele
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• ISSN: 0007-0963; 1365-2133
• DOI: 10.1093/bjd/ljac140.006

Augmented reality (AR) is a technology that enables digital information layers, such as text, image, video and audio, to be positioned in the real environment seamlessly as holograms. The holograms are displayed through a smartphone camera view. AR-specific computer vision algorithms remodel the hologram’s position based on the device’s movement in real-time and create a mediated illusion of projection in reality. As dermatologic diagnosis primarily relies on visual perception, integrating AR can provide novel benefits for patients and doctors. Medication adherence challenges for patients with inflammatory skin diseases, specifically atopic dermatitis (AD) and psoriasis, are many and complex. Nearly one-third of patients with AD do not adhere to the therapy for their lesions. Factors such as lack of understanding, patients’ forgetfulness and dissatisfaction with the healing progress or the complementary therapy are the prominent influencers which lead to treatment interruption. The benefits of AR as an enabler of positive learning experiences have been addressed in various research in healthcare, with a strong focus on medical students. However, in-depth studies have yet to be conducted regarding the impact and opportunities for patients. Our project explores how AR can increase patients’ understanding of the inflammatory skin diseases AD and psoriasis. Since AR can visualize complex information, such as different stages of the treatment, AD patients have opportunities to overcome inadequate treatment compliance without any restrictions of mobility or location due to the nature of AR experiences. The project identifies the factors for integrating a mobile AR application into patients’ daily lives to increase their medication adherence. The characteristics of AR experiences and the existing studies and research results on AR in dermatology underline the value of creating interactive experiences compared to static images or printed information. Subsequently, an AR prototype is developed to investigate and evaluate the concept of AR in therapy understanding and medication adherence. The prototype allows patients to project the different stages of development of inflammatory skin diseases onto their skin as holograms and thus visualize the onset of treatment. The prototype was demonstrated to two dermatologists and four patients. They were asked to test the prototype and were surveyed using a semi-structured interview. AR was reported beneficial in increasing