Past, Present, and Future of Contact Dermatitis Registries in the Internet Era

Abstract

Purpose of review: Digital data are invading all areas of our lives including medical practice. Digital technology grows up exponentially. Technical concerns as memory storage or processor speed are not limitations in medical data management and huge medical registries will be created in a short period of time. Epidemiological surveillance has been one of the most important issues in contact dermatitis research networks and adaptation to the new advances is mandatory. Recent findings: Digital technology can provide enough software to achieve research epidemiologic goals that were impossible 20 years ago. Legal concerns about confidentiality and simultaneous management of clinical data for daily workflow and for research are limitations of this advance. Summary: If clinicians want to update our contact dermatitis registries, it is vital to carry out two tasks: establish a standard for the variables required in the data registry and obtain Electronic Health Record programs that enable the simultaneous handling of standardized data at the clinical level and their export in real time to a referral center for epidemiologic surveillance and research.