Design and implementation of a web-based system for intraoperative consultation.

Background: With the use of electronic information distribution and telecommunication technologies, surgical teleconsultation is possible as a vehicle for consulting with experts remotely without their physical presence in the operating room (OR). This study evaluated real-time teleconsultation from the OR to remote consultants in the Russian Research Center of Surgery, Moscow, Russia and the Fundeni Clinical Hospital, Bucharest, Romania.

Methods: We evaluated the effectiveness of teleconsultation using a secure website interface where consultants could navigate through multimedia-based electronic documentation of a surgical procedure and identify the anatomic landmarks underlying the need for consultation.