ABSTRACT
Pressure ulcers continue to severely impact patient outcomes and increase health care costs. We aimed to examine the incidence and risk factors related to pressure ulcers among COVID-19 patients. A retrospective was conducted between March 2020-April 2021. Baseline differences were examined using chi-square and Fischer's exact test. Logistic regression was employed to examine the association of the collected variables to development of new pressure ulcers. 4608 patients were included, of which eighty-three acquired new pressure ulcers. Risk factors were increased age, peripheral artery disease, abnormal albumin levels, but not prone position.
ABSTRACT
The healthcare system has been greatly affected by the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. The aim of this study was to compare pre-COVID-19 and post-COVID-19 payments between industry and medical providers for all surgeons and subspecialized surgeons. Payment information was obtained from the Open Payments Program database for the 2019 and 2020 reported periods for three physician groups: all physicians, all surgeons, and each surgical subspecialty. Comparison and analysis of payment amount and type between these years was performed for each cohort. Physicians experienced a 36% decrease in industry payments with surgeons experiencing a 30.4% decrease. All surgical subspecialties, including plastic surgery (-30.5%; P < 0.01), experienced a significant decrease in industry payments except for transplant surgery, trauma surgery, and neurological surgery. Charitable contributions and compensation for services other than consulting were the only payment types that increased from 2019 to 2020. The COVID-19 pandemic has significantly impacted industry physician payments across all medical and surgical fields with payment decreases across almost all surgical subspecialties.