Effects of the COVID-19 Pandemic on the Management of Spinal Disorders – Results of a National Survey

Abstract Introduction Far-reaching political steps to contain the COVID-19 pandemic have been undertaken in recent weeks. These also impact on surgical specialties not directly involved in the management of patients infected with the coronavirus. The Spine Section, the interdisciplinary professional political arm of the German Spine Society (DWG), the Professional Association for Orthopedic and Trauma Surgery (BVOU), and the Federal Association of German Neurosurgeons (BDNC) conducted a survey on the collateral effects of the pandemic on spine surgery in Germany. Method This cross-sectional study included outpatient, day-patient and inpatient facilities caring for patients with spinal disorders during the COVID-19 pandemic. The survey was designed to analyse the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the management of inpatients and outpatients with spinal disorders and to assess the economic ramifications in the various settings. Results All members of the Spine Section (n = 134) were invited to participate in the questionnaire consented by BVOU and BDNC. The questions were answered anonymously, and the personal data entered did not permit any de-anonymisation. All in all, 68% (n = 91) of the respondents completed the survey in full. Based on the type of employment (practice 30%, practice/staff: 45% and staff: 25%) and range of activities (conservative: 5%, conservative/operative: 75%, operative: 20%) the survey by the Spine Section can be regarded as representative. 95% of the practices/outpatient clinics reported a decline in their number of patients. In addition, the number of operations performed fell by 36% (SD 17%). The percentage of elective procedures declined from approximately 78% to 6%. As a result, more than half of the physicians anticipated moderate (20 – 40%) economic challenges and 25% major (> 50%) financial problems. Conclusion In order to cushion collateral damage in the wake of future pandemic management, any implications in the interdisciplinary management of patients with spinal disorders should be based on these results.

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The Social and Psychological Impact of Superficial Dermatophytic Infection using Dlqi and Ghq-12: A Cross-Sectional Study in 174 Patients at a Tertiary Care Centre in Southern-East Rajasthan

10.47363/jdmrs/2021(2)133 ◽

2021 ◽

pp. 1-6

Author(s):

Shivani Saini ◽

◽

Agarwal Shail ◽

Jain Manish ◽

Yadav Devendra ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Quality Of Life ◽

Psychological Impact ◽

Cross Sectional Study ◽

World Population ◽

Sectional Study ◽

Cross Sectional ◽

Number Of Patients ◽

The Mean ◽

The Impact

Background: Dermatophytosis is a common fungal infection affecting 20-25% of the world population. Aims: Our study was aimed to assess its impact on health-related quality of life(QoL), mental health, and various variables. Materials and Methods: A cross-sectional study was done from April 2019 to September 2019 on 174 patients of dermatophytosis of aged more than 16 years with their informed consent. The impact of infection on the quality of life was assessed by using the Dermatology life quality index questionnaire and General health questionnaire-12 was used to assess psychological impact. A visual analogue scale was used to assess the severity of pruritus. Appropriate statistical tests were applied. Results: Males to females ratio was 1.4:1. The age group of 21-30 was having the highest number of patients with the mean age of 27.8±9.97. Most patients had BSA under 10%. The mean value of DLQI and GHQ-12 were found 15.989±7.407 and 2.8563±2.8964, respectively. We found that dermatophytosis had a very large effect on the quality of life as the maximum number of patients(39%) were within this category. The “work and school” part in the questionnaire gained maximum importance(52.8%). The mean VAS score was 6±2.733 with most patients(32.7%) had moderate itching. We found a positive correlation between VAS and DLQI, VAS and GHQ-12, DLQI, and GHQ-12 with the statistical significance. Conclusion: In our study dermatophytosis affected the quality of life as well as the psychological health of patients. Therefore proper treatment of superficial dermatophtytosis is essential to prevent it from further complications

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The Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on the Utilization of Outdoor Services at Secondary Care Hospitals of Punjab, Pakistan

The International Journal of Frontier Sciences ◽

10.37978/tijfs.v4i2.255 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 4 (2) ◽

pp. 72-74

Author(s):

Atiq ur Rahman ◽

Muhammad Imran ◽

Zarmeena Yasmeen ◽

Muzammil Irshad

Keyword(s):

Information System ◽

Health Information System ◽

Cross Sectional Study ◽

World Health ◽

Sectional Study ◽

District Health ◽

Cross Sectional ◽

Number Of Patients ◽

Health Organization ◽

The Impact

Objective: The objective of the study was to assess the effects of COVID-19 and lockdown on OPD services. Materials and Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted at District Headquarter Hospital (DHQ) and Tehsil Headquarter (THQ) Hospitals of District Layyah. The data was collected from one DHQ hospital and six THQ hospitals. The OPD data of three years (the years 2018 to 2020) was extracted from District Health Information System (DHIS). Trends of outpatients’ flow during months of March and April of three years were taken. The data were analyzed using SPSS version 24. RESULTS: The COVID-19 pandemic was declared by World Health Organization (WHO) on March 11, 2020, and all countries started lockdown nationwide which imposed a major impact on all areas of life. Fear of coronavirus spread and lockdown resulted in significant reduction in number of patients at outdoor services. In our study, we analyzed outdoor services of seven hospitals of district Layyah - one DHQ hospital and six THQ hospitals. Conclusion: Fear of coronavirus spread and lockdown resulted in significant reduction in number of patients at outdoor services.

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Glycaemic Control Impact on Renal Endpoints in Diabetic Patients on Haemodialysis

International Journal of Nephrology ◽

10.1155/2015/523521 ◽

2015 ◽

Vol 2015 ◽

pp. 1-6

Author(s):

Danielle Creme ◽

Kieran McCafferty

Keyword(s):

Glycaemic Control ◽

Cross Sectional Study ◽

Diabetic Patients ◽

Cross Sectional ◽

Poor Glycaemic Control ◽

Number Of Patients ◽

Weight Gains ◽

Before And After ◽

Patients With Diabetes ◽

The Impact

Objective. To identify the number of haemodialysis patients with diabetes in a large NHS Trust, their current glycaemic control, and the impact on other renal specific outcomes.Design. Retrospective, observational, cross-sectional study.Methods. Data was collected from an electronic patient management system. Glycaemic control was assessed from HbA1c results that were then further adjusted for albumin (Alb) and haemoglobin (Hb). Interdialytic weight gains were analysed from weights recorded before and after dialysis, 2 weeks before and after the most recent HbA1c date. Amputations were identified from electronic records.Results. 39% of patients had poor glycaemic control (HbA1c > 8%). Adjusted HbA1c resulted in a greater number of patients with poor control (55%). Significant correlations were found with interdialytic weight gains (P<0.02,r=0.14), predialysis sodium (P<0.0001,r=-1.9), and predialysis bicarbonate (P<0.02,r=0.12). Trends were observed with albumin and C-reactive protein. Patients with diabetes had more amputations (24 versus 2).Conclusion. Large number of diabetic patients on haemdialysis have poor glycaemic control. This may lead to higher interdialytic weight gains, larger sodium and bicarbonate shifts, increased number of amputations, and possibly increased inflammation and decreased nutritional status. Comprehensive guidelines and more accurate long-term tests for glycaemic control are needed.

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The Impact of an Intact Infrapatellar Fat Pad on Outcomes after Total Knee Arthroplasty

Advances in Orthopedic Surgery ◽

10.1155/2015/817906 ◽

2015 ◽

Vol 2015 ◽

pp. 1-6 ◽

Cited By ~ 7

Author(s):

Leigh White ◽

Nicholas Hartnell ◽

Melissa Hennessy ◽

Judy Mullan

Keyword(s):

Knee Pain ◽

Oxford Knee Score ◽

Cross Sectional Study ◽

Infrapatellar Fat Pad ◽

Sectional Study ◽

Fat Pad ◽

Cross Sectional ◽

Number Of Patients ◽

Total Knee ◽

The Impact

Background. The infrapatellar fat pad (IPFP) is currently resected in approximately 88% of Total Knee Arthroplasties (TKAs). We hypothesised that an intact IPFP would improve outcomes after TKA. Methods. Patients with an intact IPFP participated in this cross-sectional study by completing two surveys, at 6 and 12 months after TKA. Both surveys included questions regarding kneeling, with the Oxford Knee Score also included at 12 months. Results. Sixty patients participated in this study. At 6 and 12 months, a similar number of patients were able to kneel, 40 (66.7%) and 43 (71.7%), respectively. Fifteen (25.0%) patients were unable to kneel due to knee pain at 6 months; of these, nine (15%) were unable to kneel at 12 months. Moreover, at 12 months, 90.0% of the patients reported minimal or no knee pain. There was no correlation between the inability to kneel and knee pain (p=0.13). There was a significant correlation between the inability to kneel and reduced overall standardised knee function scores (p=0.02). Conclusions. This was the first study to demonstrate improved kneeling and descending of stairs after TKA with IPFP preservation. These results in the context of current literature show that IPFP preservation reduces the incidence of knee pain 12 months after TKA.

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Amid COVID-19 pandemic, are non-COVID patients left in the lurch?

Pakistan Journal of Medical Sciences ◽

10.12669/pjms.37.2.3536 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 37 (2) ◽

Author(s):

Laima Alam ◽

Syed Kumail Hasan Kazmi ◽

Mafaza Alam ◽

Varqa Faraid

Keyword(s):

Demographic Data ◽

Cross Sectional Study ◽

Health Care Facilities ◽

Public Hospitals ◽

Health Seeking ◽

Cross Sectional ◽

Healthcare Facilities ◽

Creative Commons ◽

Number Of Patients ◽

The Impact

Objectives: 1) To explore the possible impact of the pandemic on the health seeking behavior of the patients, 2) To explore the relation of socio-demographics on the utility of health-care facilities. Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted by enrolling all patients ≥15 years of age presenting to the Out-Patient-Department of three main public-hospitals after obtaining ethical committee approval. A questionnaire with validated Urdu translation was filled by each participant that included socio-demographic data, pre-Covid and Covid-19 era health seeking behaviors and the impact of the pandemic on the utilization of healthcare facilities. Data was analyzed using SPSS V.19. Results: A total of 393 patients were enrolled with a male preponderance (72%) and a median age range of 31-45 years. Fifty-eight percent of the study population was unemployed and 47.3% were seeking follow up care. The frequency of ER and multiple (>4 times) OPD visits were significantly decreased in the Covid-19 times whereas, the laboratory and radiology services were largely unaffected. A significant number of patients were not satisfied with the current healthcare facilities that was seen irrespective of the socio-demographic status. Emergency Room and radiology services were largely unaffected whereas, elective procedures and laboratory facilities were reported to be severely affected or delayed in relation to socio-demographic variables. Conclusions: Healthcare inequalities have widened and depression has shown a sharp rise during this pandemic. The over-burdened healthcare facilities at the verge of collapse may miss out on the chronic non-Covid patients which would ultimately lead to increased morbidity and mortality. doi: https://doi.org/10.12669/pjms.37.2.3536 How to cite this:Alam L, Kazmi SKH, Alam M, Faraid V. Amid COVID-19 pandemic, are non-COVID patients left in the lurch? Pak J Med Sci. 2021;37(2):---------. doi: https://doi.org/10.12669/pjms.37.2.3536 This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

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Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Urology Practice in Indonesia: A Nationwide Survey

10.21203/rs.3.rs-33699/v1 ◽

2020 ◽

Author(s):

Nur Rasyid ◽

Ponco Birowo ◽

Dyandra Parikesit ◽

Fakhri Rahman

Keyword(s):

Health Care Services ◽

Elective Surgery ◽

Nationwide Survey ◽

Cross Sectional Study ◽

Cross Sectional ◽

Short Supply ◽

Care Services ◽

Number Of Patients ◽

Message Service ◽

The Impact

Abstract Background.Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has affected daily practices in health care services. This study aimed to investigate the impact of COVID-19 on urology practice in Indonesia.Methods.This was a cross-sectional study using web-based questionnaire (Survey Monkey), which was distributed and collected within a period of three weeks. All practicing urologists in Indonesia were sent an e-questionnaire link via E-mail, WhatsApp Messenger application, and/or short message service, and the chief of residents in each urology centre distributed the e-questionnaire to urology residents.ResultsThe response rate was 369/485 (76%) among urologists and 220/220 (100%) among urology residents. Less than 10 percent of the responses in each section were incomplete. There are 35/369 (9.5%) Nine percent of urologists and 59/220 (26.8%) of urology residents had been suspected as COVID-19 patients, of whom seven of them were confirmed to be COVID-19 positive. The majority of urologists (66%) preferred to continue face-to-face consultations with a limited number of patients, and more than 60% of urologists preferred to postpone the majority (66%) or all elective surgery. Most urologists also chose to postpone elective surgery in patient with COVID-19-related symptoms and patient who required post-operative ICU-care. Urologist and urology residents reported high rates of using personal protective equipment, except for medical gowns and N95 masks, which were in short supply. Several uro-oncology surgeries were considered to be the top priority for Indonesian urologist during COVID-19 epidemic period.Conclusion.The COVID-19 pandemic has had a major impact on urology practice in Indonesia.

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The impact of the work environment of nurses on patients safety

10.21203/rs.3.rs-293880/v1 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

IWONA MALINOWSKA-LIPIEŃ ◽

Agnieszka Micek ◽

Teresa Gabryś ◽

Maria Kózka ◽

Krzysztof Gajda ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Patient Safety ◽

Work Environment ◽

Demographic Data ◽

Strong Association ◽

Cross Sectional Study ◽

Cross Sectional ◽

Number Of Patients ◽

Professional Independence ◽

Organizational Features ◽

The Impact

Abstract Introduction. Numerous studies have found that organizational features connected with the work environment of nurses have a significant influence on patients' safety. Aim of research. To capture nurses’ opinions about patients' safety and discern relationships with work environment characteristics. Material and methods. This cross-sectional study surveyed 1,825 nurses. The research used questionnaire consisting of four parts: 1/covered The Practice Environment Scale of the Nursing Work Index (PES-NWI), 2/assessed the quality of nursing care and care safety, 3/ contained information on the most recent duty served by the nurses, 4/ captured social and demographic data of participants. Results. The research identified strong association between patient safety assessment and work environment of nurses in the aspect of employment adequacy, cooperation between nurses and doctors, support for nurses from the managing staff, the possibility to participate in the management as well as professional promotion of nurses employed in the hospital (p<0.001). Nurses rated patient safety higher when responsible for a smaller number of patients. Conclusions. Work environment factors such as proper staffing, good cooperation with doctors, support from the management, professional independence as well as a prospect of promotion determine provision of safety for patient according to nurses.

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Multidisciplinary team decision is rare and decreasing in percutaneous vascular interventions despite positive impact on in-hospital outcomes

VASA ◽

10.1024/0301-1526/a000771 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 48 (3) ◽

pp. 262-269 ◽

Cited By ~ 3

Author(s):

Christian-Alexander Behrendt ◽

Tilo Kölbel ◽

Thea Schwaneberg ◽

Holger Diener ◽

Ralf Hohnhold ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Multidisciplinary Team ◽

Positive Impact ◽

Cross Sectional Study ◽

Invasive Treatment ◽

Cross Sectional ◽

Hospital Outcomes ◽

Vascular Intervention ◽

Medical Specialties ◽

Team Decision ◽

The Impact

Abstract. Background: Worldwide prevalence of peripheral artery disease (PAD) is increasing and peripheral vascular intervention (PVI) has become the primary invasive treatment. There is evidence that multidisciplinary team decision-making (MTD) has an impact on in-hospital outcomes. This study aims to depict practice patterns and time changes regarding MTD of different medical specialties. Methods: This is a retrospective cross-sectional study design. 20,748 invasive, percutaneous PVI of PAD conducted in the metropolitan area of Hamburg (Germany) were consecutively collected between January 2004 and December 2014. Results: MTD prior to PVI was associated with lower odds of early unsuccessful termination of the procedures (Odds Ratio 0.662, p < 0.001). The proportion of MTD decreased over the study period (30.9 % until 2009 vs. 16.6 % from 2010, p < 0.001) while rates of critical limb-threatening ischemia (34.5 % vs. 42.1 %), patients´ age (70 vs. 72 years), PVI below-the-knee (BTK) (13.2 % vs. 22.4 %), and rates of severe TASC C/D lesions BTK (43.2 % vs. 54.2 %) increased (all p < 0.001). Utilization of MTD was different between medical specialties with lowest frequency in procedures performed by internists when compared to other medical specialties (7.1 % vs. 25.7 %, p < 0.001). Conclusions: MTD prior to PVI is associated with technical success of the procedure. Nonetheless, rates of MTD prior to PVI are decreasing during the study period. Future studies should address the impact of multidisciplinary vascular teams on long-term outcomes.

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The impact of the use of a footrest on the quality of chest compressions. A prospective, randomized, cross-sectional study

Postępy Nauk Medycznych ◽

10.25121/pnm.2018.31.3.133 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 31 (3) ◽

Author(s):

Jolanta Majer ◽

Sandra Pyda ◽

Jerzy Robert Ladny ◽

Antonio Rodriguez-Nunez ◽

Lukasz Szarpak

Keyword(s):

Cross Sectional Study ◽

Sectional Study ◽

Chest Compressions ◽

Cross Sectional ◽

The Impact

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Correlation of Altmetric Attention Scores with Citations in Major Pharmacy Journals (Preprint)

10.2196/preprints.13129 ◽

2018 ◽

Author(s):

Dave L Dixon ◽

William L Baker

Keyword(s):

Citation Count ◽

Cross Sectional Study ◽

Scientific Output ◽

Cross Sectional ◽

Promotion And Tenure ◽

Article Type ◽

Key Factor ◽

Number Of Citations ◽

The Impact

BACKGROUND The impact and quality of a faculty members publications is a key factor in promotion and tenure decisions and career advancement. Traditional measures, including citation counts and journal impact factor, have notable limitations. Since 2010, alternative metrics have been proposed as another means of assessing the impact and quality of scholarly work. The Altmetric Attention Score is an objective score frequently used to determine the immediate reach of a published work across the web, including news outlets, blogs, social media, and more. Several studies evaluating the correlation between the Altmetric Attention Score and number of citations have found mixed results and may be discipline-specific. OBJECTIVE To determine the correlation between higher Altmetric Attention Scores and citation count for journal articles published in major pharmacy journals. METHODS This cross-sectional study evaluated articles from major pharmacy journals ranked in the top 10% according to the Altmetric Attention Score. Sources of attention that determined the Altmetric Attention Score were obtained, as well each articles open access status, article type, study design, and topic. Correlation between journal characteristics, including the Altmetric Attention Score and number of citations, was assessed using the Spearman’s correlation test. A Kruskal-Wallis 1-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) was used to compare the Altmetric Attention Scores between journals. RESULTS Six major pharmacy journals were identified. A total of 1,376 articles were published in 2017 and 137 of these represented the top 10% with the highest Altmetric Attention Scores. The median Altmetric Attention Score was 19 (IQR 15-28). Twitter and Mendeley were the most common sources of attention. Over half (56.2%) of the articles were original investigations and 49.8% were either cross-sectional, qualitative, or cohort studies. No significant correlation was found between the Altmetric Attention Score and citation count (rs=0.07, P = 0.485). Mendeley was the only attention source that correlated with the number of citations (rs=0.486, P<0.001). The median Altmetric Attention Score varied widely between each journal (P<0.001). CONCLUSIONS The overall median Altmetric Attention score of 19 suggests articles published in major pharmacy journals are near the top 5% of all scientific output. However, we found no correlation between the Altmetric Attention Score and number of citations for articles published in major pharmacy journals in the year 2017.

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