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Rheumatic DiseasesNCT04704544

Effectiveness of Tele-rheumatology for Delivering High Quality Rheumatology Care During the COVID-19 Crisis (EVOLVE)

A study testing Tele-rheumatology in people with Rheumatic Diseases, run by University of Alabama at Birmingham at 1 site in United States.

Completed

Finished. The study has ended and is not enrolling. Results may be posted on the official record.

Official record
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Trial summary

While tele-rheumatology (TR) visits are a COVID-19 related necessity, there is a lack of rigorous data on the comparative effectiveness of TR versus (vs) in-person usual care (UC) especially in medically at-risk populations such as people with rheumatic and musculoskeletal disease (RMD) using immunosuppressive drugs… Read more about this study

Who is it for?
Ages 18 years and older
Conditions the study is for
Rheumatic Diseases
What is being tested?
Tele-rheumatology
Could I receive a placebo?
No, everyone receives an active treatment
How many people
652 participants
Where
1 siteUnited States
Study dates
15 Sep 2021to 18 Feb 2026
Phase
Interventional
Are there results?
None posted in the registry

Key requirements

Who can take part, as listed by the sponsor. Only the study team can confirm whether you are eligible, so take this list to your doctor.

  • Ages 18 years and older
  • All sexes
  • No healthy volunteers
  • Adult, Older adult

Who may be able to join

  • Diagnosis of rheumatic disease (e.g. rheumatoid arthritis, SLE)

Who cannot join

  • unstable rheumatic disease that needs in-person visits (e.g. recent diagnosis of severe lupus nephritis)
  • expected in-office procedures (e.g., joint injection)
  • lack of access to phone

Trial locations and contacts

1 site in 1 country.

United States1 site
  • University of Alabama at Birmingham

    Birmingham, Alabama, 35294

Other trials in United States

About this study

Official title: Effectiveness of Tele-rheumatology for Delivering High Quality Rheumatology Care During the COVID-19 Crisis

While tele-rheumatology (TR) visits are a COVID-19 related necessity, there is a lack of rigorous data on the comparative effectiveness of TR versus (vs) in-person usual care (UC) especially in medically at-risk populations such as people with rheumatic and musculoskeletal disease (RMD) using immunosuppressive drugs (IS). This clear research gap was highlighted by the American College of Rheumatology in its recent Task Force Report on Telehealth in the COVID era. In this study, the investigators will rigorously evaluate the comparative effectiveness of TR visits for high risk people living with RMD and among those from socially vulnerable populations, in the COVID-19 era. This study is of key public health importance and relevance to rheumatology since it addresses the urgent clinical and policy needs to provide safe, efficacious, and equitable care to diverse patients with RMD during and beyond the COVID-19 crisis. Our proposal is very responsive to the RRF's Notice of Special interest on COVID-19 in improving the care of people with RMD during the COVID-19 pandemic. The investigators will perform the first randomized experiment of tele-rheumatology, generating high quality evidence to guide the use of this technology across diverse populations of people with RMDs. Beyond the high public health impact of this study for people with RMDs, the investigators expect that our findings will have high generalizability to other at-risk patient populations with multimorbidity and inform rheumatology practice into the foreseeable future.

Read the detailed description

People with RMDs, especially those with multi-comorbidities and on IS are among the most at-risk for COVID-19-related fragmented care and poor outcomes. RMD burden is high in terms of disability-adjusted-life years (DALYs) and has been escalating. Beyond the prevailing challenges to in-person visits such as scheduling conflicts, transportation, or disability, the COVID-19 pandemic has further exacerbated RMD patient burden through disruptions in healthcare delivery (e.g. limited availability of in-person visits). Thus, high quality adaptations of healthcare services for people living with RMD including through TR in the context of the COVID-19 crisis are badly needed. The investigators found from a recent survey of 24,500 people living with RMD that 60% of respondents avoided in-person clinic visits. However, with the increasing availability of technology (90% Americans have internet access, 81% are online daily most patients and clinicians can engage in some form of TR. Due to widespread social distancing and major health policy changes necessitated by COVID-19, TR has been swiftly adopted (but minimally tested) as a means to deliver ongoing care for people with RMD. Because patients can be evaluated in their own homes, thus avoiding travel that increases COVID-19 risk, this approach provides means of healthcare for socially and medically vulnerable groups, such as those residing in rural areas and those with comorbidities, a group particularly at high risk of COVID-19 complications.

Being tested
Tele-rheumatology
Medical subject headings
Rheumatic Diseases

What participants receive

What participants receive. In a randomised study each person is assigned to one group by chance.

  • Tele-rheumatologyOther

    Participants will receive virtual visits via video conferencing and/or phone.

Study groups in NCT04704544
Study groupRoleWhat they receive
Tele-rheumatology first visit and Usual Care second visitExperimentalParticipants randomized to this visit will receive a tele-rheumatology visit first.
Receives: Other: Tele-rheumatology
Usual Care first visit and Tele-rheumatology second visitExperimentalParticipants randomized to this visit will receive a usual care visit first.
Receives: Other: Tele-rheumatology

What is being measured

The primary outcome is the main question the study is designed to answer.

  1. Patient satisfaction

    Patient satisfaction with type visit. Assessed with AHRQ's Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems (CAHPS)® survey

    Measured: 36-72 hours post visit after the first visit

Secondary outcomes (1)
  1. Patient preference

    Patient preference with type visit. Assessed using "If you had a choice, what type of visit would you prefer?" with options a. telemedicine, b. in-office

    Measured: 36-72 hours post visit, after the second visit

Timeline

From the start of the study to its completion; the mark is today. Estimated dates are the sponsor’s plan.

  1. First posted11 Jan 2021
  2. Study start15 Sep 2021
  3. Primary completion30 Nov 2023
  4. Study completion18 Feb 2026

Resources

More details

For doctors and researchers: how the study is designed, who runs it, and its registry IDs.

Study design
Study type
Interventional
Phase
Phase N/A
Primary purpose
Treatment
Allocation
Randomised
Intervention model
Parallel groups
Model description
We will conduct an open label, two-period, multi-center, non-inferiority, patient-level randomized controlled trial comparing tele-rheumatology (audio +/- video) with usual care (in-person) visits. Patients will be randomized to the sequence of care for their next two visits (V1 and V2): i) tele-rheumatology (V1) + usual care (V2), OR ii) usual care (V1) + tele-rheumatology (V2). Primary outcome will be ascertained after the first visit (V1).
Masking
Single blind
Who is masked
Care provider
Enrolment
652 participants (actual)
IDs, dates and publications
ClinicalTrials.gov ID
NCT04704544
Sponsor's protocol ID
IRB-300006553
Other IDs
0000000
Status last verified
Feb 2026
First submitted
6 Jan 2021
Last updated
20 Feb 2026
Results posted
No
Data monitoring committee
No
FDA-regulated drug
No
FDA-regulated device
No
Individual data sharing
No

Publications

  • Feldman CH, Ramsey-Goldman R. Widening Disparities Among Patients With Rheumatic Diseases in the COVID-19 Era: An Urgent Call to Action. Arthritis Rheumatol. 2020 Sep;72(9):1409-1411. doi: 10.1002/art.41306. Epub 2020 Aug 9. No abstract available.

    PubMed 32379381
  • Brooks PM. The burden of musculoskeletal disease--a global perspective. Clin Rheumatol. 2006 Nov;25(6):778-81. doi: 10.1007/s10067-006-0240-3. Epub 2006 Apr 12.

    PubMed 16609823
  • Donelan K, Barreto EA, Sossong S, Michael C, Estrada JJ, Cohen AB, Wozniak J, Schwamm LH. Patient and clinician experiences with telehealth for patient follow-up care. Am J Manag Care. 2019 Jan;25(1):40-44.

    PubMed 30667610
  • Michaud K, Wipfler K, Shaw Y, Simon TA, Cornish A, England BR, Ogdie A, Katz P. Experiences of Patients With Rheumatic Diseases in the United States During Early Days of the COVID-19 Pandemic. ACR Open Rheumatol. 2020 Jun;2(6):335-343. doi: 10.1002/acr2.11148. Epub 2020 May 9.

    PubMed 32311836
  • Webster P. Virtual health care in the era of COVID-19. Lancet. 2020 Apr 11;395(10231):1180-1181. doi: 10.1016/S0140-6736(20)30818-7. No abstract available.

    PubMed 32278374
  • Bachireddy C, Chen C, Dar M. Securing the Safety Net and Protecting Public Health During a Pandemic: Medicaid's Response to COVID-19. JAMA. 2020 May 26;323(20):2009-2010. doi: 10.1001/jama.2020.4272. No abstract available.

    PubMed 32191260
  • Uscher-Pines L, Fischer S, Tong I, Mehrotra A, Malsberger R, Ray K. Virtual First Responders: the Role of Direct-to-Consumer Telemedicine in Caring for People Impacted by Natural Disasters. J Gen Intern Med. 2018 Aug;33(8):1242-1244. doi: 10.1007/s11606-018-4440-8. No abstract available.

    PubMed 29691713
  • Hayes BL, Curtis JR, Laster A, Saag K, Tanner SB, Liu C, Womack C, Johnson KC, Khaliq F, Carbone LD. Osteoporosis care in the United States after declines in reimbursements for DXA. J Clin Densitom. 2010 Oct-Dec;13(4):352-60. doi: 10.1016/j.jocd.2010.08.001.

    PubMed 21029972
  • Richardson S, Hirsch JS, Narasimhan M, Crawford JM, McGinn T, Davidson KW; the Northwell COVID-19 Research Consortium; Barnaby DP, Becker LB, Chelico JD, Cohen SL, Cookingham J, Coppa K, Diefenbach MA, Dominello AJ, Duer-Hefele J, Falzon L, Gitlin J, Hajizadeh N, Harvin TG, Hirschwerk DA, Kim EJ, Kozel ZM, Marrast LM, Mogavero JN, Osorio GA, Qiu M, Zanos TP. Presenting Characteristics, Comorbidities, and Outcomes Among 5700 Patients Hospitalized With COVID-19 in the New York City Area. JAMA. 2020 May 26;323(20):2052-2059. doi: 10.1001/jama.2020.6775.

    PubMed 32320003
  • Nesbitt TS, Marcin JP, Daschbach MM, Cole SL. Perceptions of local health care quality in 7 rural communities with telemedicine. J Rural Health. 2005 Winter;21(1):79-85. doi: 10.1111/j.1748-0361.2005.tb00066.x.

    PubMed 15667014
  • Yang J, Zheng Y, Gou X, Pu K, Chen Z, Guo Q, Ji R, Wang H, Wang Y, Zhou Y. Prevalence of comorbidities and its effects in patients infected with SARS-CoV-2: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Int J Infect Dis. 2020 May;94:91-95. doi: 10.1016/j.ijid.2020.03.017. Epub 2020 Mar 12.

    PubMed 32173574
  • Zhou F, Yu T, Du R, Fan G, Liu Y, Liu Z, Xiang J, Wang Y, Song B, Gu X, Guan L, Wei Y, Li H, Wu X, Xu J, Tu S, Zhang Y, Chen H, Cao B. Clinical course and risk factors for mortality of adult inpatients with COVID-19 in Wuhan, China: a retrospective cohort study. Lancet. 2020 Mar 28;395(10229):1054-1062. doi: 10.1016/S0140-6736(20)30566-3. Epub 2020 Mar 11.

    PubMed 32171076

Questions about this trial

What is this clinical trial studying?

A study testing Tele-rheumatology in people with Rheumatic Diseases, run by University of Alabama at Birmingham at 1 site in United States.

The full registered description is in the About this study section and the official record.

Who may be eligible to take part?

The sponsor lists 1 inclusion and 3 exclusion criteria. Eligibility is decided by the study team after screening, so read the full criteria and contact a listed site.

Is this clinical trial currently recruiting?

The record says: finished, as of the sponsor's last update on 20 Feb 2026. Status can change between updates, so confirm with the study contact before making plans.

Where is the study taking place?

The record lists 1 site in United States. Whether a site is taking part right now should be confirmed with that site. See every site.

What are the possible benefits and risks?

They depend on the study and the treatment, and no study can promise a benefit. The study team explains the known risks during informed consent, before anyone joins; the record itself does not list them.

Are results available for this study?

The study is completed, but results are not available in the source record. That does not mean the treatment did or did not work.

How can a doctor refer a patient or contact the research team?

The record lists no contact. The official record names the sponsor, who can be asked directly. AzTrials does not enrol participants or take referrals.

What does the primary outcome measure?

Patient satisfaction (time frame: 36-72 hours post visit after the first visit). It is what the study was designed to measure, not a finding.

Where can I read the original study information?

On the ClinicalTrials.gov record for NCT04704544, which also lists 12 linked publications.

Does a listing mean the treatment is approved or proven to work?

No. A listing means the study is registered. It does not show that the treatment is safe, works, or is approved by a regulator.

How often is this information updated?

AzTrials copies changed records from ClinicalTrials.gov every night and reloads the whole registry every week. The sponsor last updated this record on 20 Feb 2026.

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