ABSTRACT
Introduction and objectives. COVID-19 is a disease caused by the SARS-CoV-2 virus. In Spain, between March and June 2020, the first State of Alarm was declared in order to contain the pandemic. Our objective is to evaluate the healthcare demand and the diseases that came to the Pediatric Emergency Department and were admitted during the time that the first State of Alarm lasted, comparing with the same months of the years 2018 and 2019. Results. There is a reduction in the number of admissions from 345 to 141, an increase in complexity demonstrated by a longer duration of admissions to 7.3 +/- 12.4 days (6.2 +/- 8.6 days in 2018 and 4, 8 +/- 6.9 in 2019). Infectious diseases (mainly respiratory) decreased, with admissions for neoplasms, psychiatric pathology, appendicitis and circulatory diseases remaining stable. In Pediatric Emergencies, in the years 2018 and 2019 (from March 1 to June 30), 9,075 and 8,525 patients were attended, while in 2020, 2,215 were attended, increasing the percentage of admissions from the emergency room of 3.6% and 3.4% to 6% in 2020. The diseases that increased most significantly were traumatic injuries and poisonings. Both in admissions and in emergencies there is an increase in the age of the patients. Conclusions. The State of Alarm influenced the care pressure and the type of diseases treated in the Pediatric Service, with a decrease in the number of Emergencies and admissions, an increase in age and a modification of the type of diseases treated.