Endodontic Emergencies Encountered in a Tertiary Dental Hospital during the Periods of Prelockdown, Lockdown, and Sequential Unlock Phases of the First Wave of COVID-19 in Ahmedabad City, India.

INTRODUCTION: With the worldwide spread of SARS-CoV-2 infection, temporary suspension of all the elective dental procedures and an urgent shift to nonaerosol producing dental treatments were observed. This study provides a detailed description of emergency treatments provided in the Department of Endodontics at a tertiary healthcare centre during the period of prelockdown, lockdown, and sequential unlocking from March 1, 2020, to October 31, 2020. METHODS: Access to General and Departmental OPD data along with treatment records was obtained and was segregated based on age, sex, and treatments performed. Treatments were divided into aerosol generating procedures (AGPs) and non-AGPs and further subdivided into palliative treatment (PT), pulp capping (PC), incision and drainage (ID), temporary filling (TF), pulpectomy (PU), and pulpotomy (PO). Data was analysed and subjected to chi-square test. RESULTS: A total of 15052 patients approached general OPD during the period of 8 months of which 5698 (37.86%) were endodontic in origin and treatments offered were PT 858 (15.05%), PO 1560 (27.37%), PU 2018 (35.42%), TF 500 (8.78%), ID 164 (2.88%), and PC 598 (10.94%). Also, more females (57.28% (3264/5698)) visited the department as compared to males (42.72% (2434/5698)). CONCLUSION: The pandemic had turned the tables on over the people around the world, and it has become extremely necessary to rule out the emergencies needed to treat the patients accordingly shifting more towards non-AGPs compared to AGPs among the various age groups of the society.

Tracheotomy Outcomes in 64 Ventilated COVID-19 Patients at a High-Volume Center in Bronx, NY.

OBJECTIVES/HYPOTHESIS: The COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in a dramatic increase in the number of patients requiring prolonged mechanical ventilation. Few studies have reported COVID-19 specific tracheotomy outcomes, and the optimal timing and patient selection criteria for tracheotomy remains undetermined. We delineate our outcomes for tracheotomies performed on COVID-19 patients during the peak of the pandemic at a major epicenter in the United States. METHODS: This is a retrospective observational cohort study. Mortality, ventilation liberation rate, complication rate, and decannulation rate were analyzed. RESULTS: Sixty-four patients with COVID-19 underwent tracheotomy between April 1, 2020 and May 19, 2020 at two tertiary care hospitals in Bronx, New York. The average duration of intubation prior to tracheotomy was 20 days ((interquartile range [IQR] 16.5-26.0). The mortality rate was 33% (n = 21), the ventilation liberation rate was 47% (n = 30), the decannulation rate was 28% (n = 18), and the complication rate was 19% (n = 12). Tracheotomies performed by Otolaryngology were associated with significantly improved survival (P < .05) with 60% of patients alive at the conclusion of the study compared to 9%, 12%, and 19% of patients undergoing tracheotomy performed by Critical Care, General Surgery, and Pulmonology, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: So far, this is the second largest study describing tracheotomy outcomes in COVID-19 patients in the United States. Our early outcomes demonstrate successful ventilation liberation and decannulation in COVID-19 patients. Further inquiry is necessary to determine the optimal timing and identification of patient risk factors predictive of improved survival in COVID-19 patients undergoing tracheotomy. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: 4-retrospective cohort study Laryngoscope, 131:E1797-E1804, 2021.

Safety Considerations for In Situ Simulation in Closed SARS-CoV-2 Units.

SUMMARY STATEMENT: The severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) pandemic placed a tremendous strain on the healthcare system, which led to the deployment of new personnel into acute care settings, early graduation of medical students, and development of new treatment spaces. Education teams at the Montefiore Health System and New York Health and Hospitals/Jacobi Medical Center found simulation, both laboratory-based and in situ, critical to the training of medical staff and investigation of latent safety threats. Through our experience, we encountered unique infection control concerns based on in situ sessions, which prompted us to redesign our programs for the treatment of SARS-CoV-2. Using this experience, we outline our rationale for the use of in situ simulation for newly developed SARS-CoV-2 spaces along with recommendations on safety checks to consider before starting.