Telemedicine support for a marathon swimmer and the Amazon swim expedition

To support the Amazon Swim Expedition, a virtual medical team was established which provided teleconsultations to the physician on board the expedition support boat. A baseline examination was performed at the beginning of the expedition followed by weekly examinations on every member of the team. Twice daily examinations including measurement of blood pressure, heart rate, body weight and a pain scale were performed on the swimmer. The medical team was contacted through email (mainly), telephone and live video consultation using Skype, and store-and-forward techniques to upload pre-recorded consultations via a low bandwidth satellite link. The project demonstrated the feasibility of obtaining real-time advice for patients in very remote conditions. It also showed the feasibility of using a virtual international collaboration of relevant experts.