scholarly journals Impact of the COVID-19 lockdown period on adult musculoskeletal injuries and surgical management: a retrospective monocentric study

2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
V. Crenn ◽  
M. El Kinani ◽  
G. Pietu ◽  
M. Leteve ◽  
M. Persigant ◽  
...  

AbstractThe coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has led to the worldwide implementation of unprecedented public protection measures. On the 17th of March, the French government announced a lockdown of the population for 8 weeks. This monocentric study assessed the impact of this lockdown on the musculoskeletal injuries treated at the emergency department as well as the surgical indications. We carried out a retrospective study in the Emergency Department and the Surgery Department of Nantes University Hospital from 18 February to 11 May 2020. We collected data pertaining to the demographics, the mechanism, the type, the severity, and inter-hospital transfer for musculoskeletal injuries from our institution. We compared the 4-week pre-lockdown period and the 8-week lockdown period divided into two 4-week periods: early lockdown and late lockdown. There was a 52.1% decrease in musculoskeletal injuries among patients presenting to the Emergency Department between the pre-lockdown and the lockdown period (weekly incidence: 415.3 ± 44.2 vs. 198.5 ± 46.0, respectively, p < .001). The number of patients with surgical indications decreased by 33.4% (weekly incidence: 44.3 ± 3.8 vs. 28.5 ± 10.2, p = .048). The policy for inter-hospital transfers to private entities resulted in 64 transfers (29.4%) during the lockdown period. There was an increase in the incidence of surgical high severity trauma (Injury Severity Score > 16) between the pre-lockdown and the early lockdown period (2 (1.1%) vs. 7 (7.2%), respectively, p = .010) as well as between the pre-lockdown and the late lockdown period (2 (1.1%) vs. 10 (8.3%), respectively, p = .004). We observed a significant increase in the weekly emergency department patient admissions between the early and the late lockdown period (161.5 ± 22.9, 235.5 ± 27.7, respectively, p = .028). A pronounced decrease in the incidence of musculoskeletal injuries was observed secondary to the lockdown measures, with emergency department patient admissions being halved and surgical indications being reduced by a third. The increase in musculoskeletal injuries during the late confinement period and the higher incidence of severe trauma highlights the importance of maintaining a functional trauma center organization with an inter-hospital transfer policy in case of a COVID-19s wave lockdown.

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Vincent Crenn ◽  
Monia El Kinani ◽  
Guy Pietu ◽  
Leteve Marie ◽  
Mike Persigant ◽  
...  

Abstract Background The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has led to the worldwide implementation of unprecedented public protection measures. On the 17th of March, the French government announced a lockdown of the population for 8 weeks. This monocentric study assessed the impact of this lockdown on the musculoskeletal injuries treated at the emergency department as well as the surgical indications. Methods We carried out a retrospective study in the Emergency Department and the Surgery Department of Nantes University Hospital from 18 February to 11 May 2020. We collected data pertaining to the demographics, the mechanism, the type, the severity, and inter-hospital transfer for musculoskeletal injuries from our institution. We compared the four-week pre-lockdown period and the eight-week lockdown period divided into two four-week periods: early lockdown and late lockdown. Results There was a 52.1% decrease in musculoskeletal injuries among patients presenting to the Emergency Department between the pre-lockdown and the lockdown period (weekly incidence: 415.3 ± 44.2 vs. 198.5 ± 46.0, respectively, p < .001). The number of patients with surgical indications decreased by 33.4% (weekly incidence: 44.3 ± 3.8 vs. 28.5 ± 10.2, p = .048). The policy for inter-hospital transfers to private entities resulted in 64 transfers (29.4%) during the lockdown period. There was an increase in the incidence of surgical high severity trauma (Injury Severity Score > 16) between the pre-lockdown and the early lockdown period (2 (1.1%) vs. 7 (7.2%), respectively, p = .010) as well as between the pre-lockdown and the late lockdown period (2 (1.1%) vs. 10 (8.3%), respectively, p = .004). We observed a significant increase in the weekly emergency department patient admissions between the early and the late lockdown period (161.5 ± 22.9, 235.5 ± 27.7, respectively, p = .028). Conclusion A pronounced decrease in the incidence of musculoskeletal injuries was observed secondary to the lockdown measures, with emergency department patient admissions being halved and surgical indications being reduced by a third. The increase in musculoskeletal injuries during the late confinement period and the higher incidence of severe trauma highlights the importance of maintaining a functional trauma center organization with an inter-hospital transfer policy in case of a COVID-19 second wave lockdown.


2013 ◽  
Vol 3 (3) ◽  
pp. 17 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dan Brun Petersen ◽  
Thomas Andersen Schmidt

Background: Hospitals in countries with public health systems have recently adopted organizational changes to improve efficiency and resource allocation, and reducing inappropriate hospitalizations has been established as an important goal, as well as avoiding or buffering overcrowding in Emergency Departments (EDs). Aims: Our goal was to describe the impact of a Quick Diagnostic Unit established on January 1, 2012, integrated in an ED setting in a Danish public university hospital following its function for the first year. Design: Observational, descriptive and comparative study. Methods: Our sample comprised the total number of patients being admitted and discharged from the Department of Internal Medicine in 2011 and 2012, with special focus on the General Medicine Ward. Results: Compared with 2011 the establishment of the Quick Diagnostic Unit integrated in the Emergency Department resulted in the admittance and discharge of fewer patients (40%; p < .0001) to the hospital’s General Medicine Ward and 11.6% (p < .0001) fewer patients in the whole Department of Internal Medicine. Conclusions: A Quick Diagnostic Unit integrated in an ED setting represents a useful and fast track model for the diagnostic study and treatment of patients with simple internal medicine ailments, and also serves as a buffer for overcrowding of the ED.


Author(s):  
Łukasz Bilaszewski ◽  
Wojciech Timler ◽  
Katarzyna Budrewicz ◽  
Michał Marczak ◽  
Remigiusz Kozłowski ◽  
...  

Background: During the COVID-19 pandemic, the number of admissions to the emergency department (ED) due to a primary diagnosis of atrial fibrillation (AF) has decreased when compared to pre-pandemic times. The principal aim of the study was to assess the frequency of SARS-CoV-2 infections and sinus rhythm restoration among patients who arrived at the ED with AF. Secondary aims included determining whether patients arriving at the ED principally due to AF delayed their presentations and whether the frequency of successful cardioversion for AF was decreased during the pandemic period. Materials and Methods: A retrospective analysis of medical records of patients admitted to two hospital EDs due to AF during July–December 2019 (pre-pandemic period) versus July–December 2020 (pandemic period) was performed. Results: During the study periods, 601 ED visits by 497 patients were made due to the primary diagnosis of AF. The patients were aged 71.2+/−13.5 years and 51.3% were male. The duration of an AF episode before the ED admission was 10 h (4.5–30 h) during the pandemic period vs. 5 h (3–24 h) during the non-pandemic period (p = 0.001). A shorter duration of the AF episode before ED admission was associated with the successful restoration of the sinus rhythm. During the pandemic period, among patients with short-lasting AF who were not treated with Phenazolinum, the restoration of the sinus rhythm was more frequent in the Copernicus Memorial Hospital than in the University Hospital (p = 0.026). A positive SARS-CoV-2 test was found in 5 (1%) patients, while 2 other patients (0.5%) had a prior diagnosis of COVID-19 disease noted in their medical history. Conclusions: 1. The number of AF episodes treated in these two EDs was lower during the pandemic than non-pandemic period. 2. The patients with AF appeared at the ED later after AF onset in the pandemic period. 3. Successful cardioversion of atrial fibrillation was more frequent during the pre-pandemic period in one of the two hospitals. 4. A difference of approaches to the treatment of short-lasting AF episodes between EDs during the pandemic period may exist between these two EDs. 5. The patients with SARS-CoV-2 infection during the second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic constituted a small percentage of the patients admitted to EDs due to an AF episode.


2021 ◽  
Vol 29 (1) ◽  
pp. 230949902199607 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chia-Lung Shih ◽  
Peng-Ju Huang ◽  
Hsuan-Ti Huang ◽  
Chung-Hwan Chen ◽  
Tien-Ching Lee ◽  
...  

Aim: Taiwan’s response to the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) differed in that it successfully prevented the spread without having to shutdown or overburden medical services. Patients’ fear regarding the pandemic would be the only reason to reduce surgeries, so Taiwan could be the most suitable place for research on the influence of psychological factors. This study aimed to assess the impact of patients’ fear on orthopedic surgeries in Taiwan amid the peak period of the COVID-19 pandemic. Patients and Methods: The investigation period included the COVID-19 pandemic (March 2020 to April 2020) and the corresponding period in the previous year. The following data on patients with orthopedic diseases were collected: outpatient visits, hospital admission, and surgical modalities. Results: The COVID-19 pandemic led to a 22%–29% and 20%–26% reduction in outpatients, 22%–27% and 25%–37% reduction in admissions, and 26%–35% and 18%–34% reduction in surgeries, respectively, at both hospitals. The weekly mean number of patients was significantly smaller during the COVID-19 pandemic for all types of surgery and elective surgeries at the university hospital, and for all types of surgery, elective surgeries, and total knee arthroplasties at the community hospital. Further, patients visiting the community hospital during the pandemic were significantly younger, for all types of surgery, elective surgeries, and total knee arthroplasties. Conclusions: The reduction in orthopedic surgeries in Taiwan’s hospitals during COVID-19 could be attributed to patients’ fear. Even without restriction, the pandemic inevitably led to a reduction of about 20%–30% of the operation volume.


2015 ◽  
Vol 4 (5) ◽  
pp. 47 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jean Claude Byiringiro ◽  
Rex Wong ◽  
Caroline Davis ◽  
Jeffery Williams ◽  
Joseph Becker ◽  
...  

Few case studies exist related to hospital accident and emergency department (A&E) quality improvement efforts in lowerresourced settings. We sought to report the impact of quality improvement principles applied to A&E overcrowding and flow in the largest referral and teaching hospital in Rwanda. A pre- and post-intervention study was conducted. A linked set of strategies included reallocating room space based on patient/visitor demand and flow, redirecting traffic, establishing a patient triage system and installing white boards to facilitate communication. Two months post-implementation, the average number of patients boarding in the A&E hallways significantly decreased from 28 (pre-intervention) to zero (post-intervention), p < .001. Foot traffic per dayshift hour significantly decreased from 221 people to 160 people (28%, p < .001), and non-A&E related foot traffic decreased from 81.4% to 36.3% (45% decrease, p < .001). One hundred percent of the A&E patients have been formally triaged since the implementation of the newly established triage system. Our project used quality improvement principles to reduce the number of patients boarding in the hallways and to decrease unnecessary foot traffic in the A&E department with little investment from the hospital. Key success factors included a collaborative multidisciplinary project team, strong internal champions, data-driven analysis, evidence-based interventions, senior leadership support, and rapid application of initial implementation learnings. Results to date show the application of quality improvement principles can help hospitals in resource-limited settings improve quality of care at relatively low cost.


2018 ◽  
Vol 7 (5) ◽  
pp. 217-224
Author(s):  
Zouaouia Chama ◽  
Khedoudj Kanoun ◽  
Fatima Zohra Elkadi ◽  
Kara Turqui Douidi ◽  
Noria Harir ◽  
...  

Helicobacter pylori infection concerns half of the world’s population, mainly in developing countries. It causes several gastrodudenal pathologies such as gastritis, ulcer and gastric adenocarcinoma. The aim of our study was to determine the prevalence of H.pylori infection and to assess the impact of different epidemiological factors as well as principal gastric diseases associ-ated to this infection. We underwent a prospective study during 18 months (month 2016-month 2017) which implicated 201 symptomatic patients for gastric fiboptic endoscopy at the level of Sidi Bel Abbes University hospital. We collected patients’ biopsies to perform a histological study and H. pylori culture. H. pylori identification was carried out based on bacteriological and biochemical analysis. The middle age of our population was (47.29 ±15.97ans) and the sex-ratio =0,8. The global prevalence of Helicobacter pylori infection is of 61.2% (123/201). This rate, after a statistic analysis, seems to be significantly related to age. It is particularly high especially for patients belonging to age range (20-30)-(51-60) years. The gender did not affect the infection prevalence that is more frequent in the gastritis case. We noticed also that HP infection prevalence was important in SBA the hospital. The range age (20-30)-(51-60) years had the highest prevalence of H. pylori and of gastritis which might be a risky ground of gastric cancer appearance. The ulcer pathology maximal rate concerned the group of 51 to 60 years. Above this age, this rate dropped whereas the number of patients suffering from gastric cancer, which presents an important rate in our study, increase for the group of 61-70 years.


2021 ◽  
Vol 8 (Supplement_1) ◽  
pp. S513-S513
Author(s):  
Elizabeth A Aguilera ◽  
Gilhen Rodriguez ◽  
Gabriela P Del Bianco ◽  
Gloria Heresi ◽  
James Murphy ◽  
...  

Abstract Background The Emergency Department (ED) at Memorial Hermann Hospital (MHH) - Texas Medical Center (TMC), Houston, Texas has a long established screening program targeted at detection of HIV infections. The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on this screening program is unknown. Methods The Routine HIV screening program includes opt-out testing of all adults 18 years and older with Glasgow score &gt; 9. HIV 4th generation Ag/Ab screening, with reflex to Gennius confirmatory tests are used. Pre-pandemic (March 2019 to February 2020) to Pandemic period (March 2020 to February 2021) intervals were compared. Results 72,929 patients visited MHH_ED during the pre-pandemic period and 57,128 in the pandemic period, a 22% decline. The number of patients tested for HIV pre-pandemic was 9433 and 6718 pandemic, a 29% decline. When the pandemic year was parsed into first and last 6 months interval and compared to similar intervals in the year pre pandemic, 39% followed by 16% declines in HIV testing were found. In total, 354 patients were HIV positives, 209, (59%) in the pre-pandemic and 145 (41%) in the pandemic period.The reduction in new HIV infections found was directly proportional to the decline in patients visiting the MHH-ED where the percent of patients HIV positive was constant across intervals (2.21% vs 2.26%). Demographic and outcome characteristics were constant across the compared intervals. Conclusion The COVID -19 pandemic reduced detection of new HIV infections by screening in direct proportion to the reduction in MHH-ED patient visits. The impact of COVID-19 pandemic decreased with duration of the pandemic. Disclosures All Authors: No reported disclosures


2020 ◽  
Vol 8 (24) ◽  
pp. 1-214 ◽  
Author(s):  
Simon C Moore ◽  
Davina Allen ◽  
Yvette Amos ◽  
Joanne Blake ◽  
Alan Brennan ◽  
...  

Background Front-line health-care services are under increased demand when acute alcohol intoxication is most common, which is in night-time environments. Cities have implemented alcohol intoxication management services to divert the intoxicated away from emergency care. Objectives To evaluate the effectiveness, cost-effectiveness and acceptability to patients and staff of alcohol intoxication management services and undertake an ethnographic study capturing front-line staff’s views on the impact of acute alcohol intoxication on their professional lives. Methods This was a controlled mixed-methods longitudinal observational study with an ethnographic evaluation in parallel. Six cities with alcohol intoxication management services were compared with six matched control cities to determine effects on key performance indicators (e.g. number of patients in the emergency department and ambulance response times). Surveys captured the impact of alcohol intoxication management services on the quality of care for patients in six alcohol intoxication management services, six emergency departments with local alcohol intoxication management services and six emergency departments without local alcohol intoxication management services. The ethnographic study considered front-line staff perceptions in two cities with alcohol intoxication management services and one city without alcohol intoxication management services. Results Alcohol intoxication management services typically operated in cities in which the incidence of acute alcohol intoxication was greatest. The per-session average number of attendances across all alcohol intoxication management services was low (mean 7.3, average minimum 2.8, average maximum 11.8) compared with the average number of emergency department attendances per alcohol intoxication management services session (mean 78.8), and the number of patients diverted away from emergency departments, per session, required for services to be considered cost-neutral was 8.7, falling to 3.5 when ambulance costs were included. Alcohol intoxication management services varied, from volunteer-led first aid to more clinically focused nurse practitioner services, with only the latter providing evidence for diversion from emergency departments. Qualitative and ethnographic data indicated that alcohol intoxication management services are acceptable to practitioners and patients and that they address unmet need. There was evidence that alcohol intoxication management services improve ambulance response times and reduce emergency department attendance. Effects are uncertain owing to the variation in service delivery. Limitations The evaluation focused on health service outcomes, yet evidence arose suggesting that alcohol intoxication management services provide broader societal benefits. There was no nationally agreed standard operating procedure for alcohol intoxication management services, undermining the evaluation. Routine health data outcomes exhibited considerable variance, undermining opportunities to provide an accurate appraisal of the heterogenous collection of alcohol intoxication management services. Conclusions Alcohol intoxication management services are varied, multipartner endeavours and would benefit from agreed national standards. Alcohol intoxication management services are popular with and benefit front-line staff and serve as a hub facilitating partnership working. They are popular with alcohol intoxication management services patients and capture previously unmet need in night-time environments. However, acute alcohol intoxication in emergency departments remains an issue and opportunities for diversion have not been entirely realised. The nurse-led model was the most expensive service evaluated but was also the most likely to divert patients away from emergency departments, suggesting that greater clinical involvement and alignment with emergency departments is necessary. Alcohol intoxication management services should be regarded as fledgling services that require further work to realise benefit. Future work Research could be undertaken to determine if a standardised model of alcohol intoxication management services, based on the nurse practitioner model, can be developed and implemented in different settings. Future evaluations should go beyond the health service and consider outcomes more generally, especially for the police. Future work on the management of acute alcohol intoxication in night-time environments could recognise the partnership between health-care, police and ambulance services and third-sector organisations in managing acute alcohol intoxication. Trial registration Current Controlled Trials ISRCTN63096364. Funding This project was funded by the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) Health Services and Delivery Research programme and will be published in full in Health Services and Delivery Research; Vol. 8, No. 24. See the NIHR Journals Library website for further project information.


2019 ◽  
Vol 26 (1) ◽  
pp. 47-52 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. Christien van der Linden ◽  
Roeline A.Y. de Beaufort ◽  
Sven A.G. Meylaerts ◽  
Crispijn L. van den Brand ◽  
Naomi van der Linden

2021 ◽  
Vol 39 ◽  
Author(s):  
Antonella Pino ◽  
◽  
Lorenzo Gasco ◽  
Daqi Zhang ◽  
Paolo Carcoforo ◽  
...  

Introduction: Thyroid and parathyroid diseases are very common. Most of these cases are in women and may be amenable to surgery. The patient’s perception that these are not life-threatening diseases leads them to expect an excellent aesthetic result, since the surgical incision area is clearly visible. Objective: To evaluate different scarring outcomes using three different energy-based devices (Harmonic Focus®, Johnson & Johnson, New Brunswick, NJ; Thunderbeat Open Fine Jaw®, Olympus Medical, Tokyo, Japan; LigaSure Small Jaw®, Medtronic, Dublin, Ireland) and to determine the impact of post-thyroidectomy/parathyroidectomy scars on the patient’s quality of life. Methods: One hundred female patients who underwent thyroidectomy or parathyroidectomy between September 2017 and September 2019 at the Endocrine and Minimally Invasive Surgery Department of Messina University Hospital were recruited. A retrospective analysis assessed the thickness of the cervical scar via ultrasound imaging, and the patient’s degree of satisfaction through the Patient and Observer Scar Assessment Scale (POSAS) and the Body Dysmorphic Disorder Questionnaire (BDDQ). Results: The patients were divided into three groups according to the energy-device used: group A (LigaSure SJ (n=38), group B (Harmonic F, n=32) and group C (Thunderbeat OFJ, n=30). The three groups were homogeneous with respect to number of patients, age and surgical procedures. The best aesthetic result, which correlated with the lowest scar thickness, was observed in group A; these patients were more satisfied than those in the other two groups. Moreover, correlations between scar thickness and quantitative variables (such as age or BMI) were not found in any of the groups. Conclusions: Based on the data collected and our experience, the LigaSure Small Jaw® (Medtronic) seems to offer the best aesthetic outcome in patients who undergo transverse cervicotomy for thyroid and parathyroid diseases. However, further prospective studies involving a greater number of cases are needed.


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