Neurosurgical Referral Patterns During the Coronavirus Disease 2019 Pandemic: A United Kingdom Experience.
World Neurosurg
; 144: e414-e420, 2020 12.
Article
in English
| MEDLINE | ID: covidwho-1019564
ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND:
Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a severe respiratory viral illness that has spread rapidly across the world. However, the United Kingdom has been particularly affected. Evidence has suggested that stroke, cardiac, and spinal presentations decreased during the pandemic as the public avoided seeking care. The effect on neurosurgical presentations and referrals during COVID-19 is unclear. Our aim, therefore, was to describe the referral patterns to a high-volume neurosurgical department in the United Kingdom during the COVID-19 pandemic.METHODS:
Electronic referrals were identified from the referrals database from January 1, 2020 to May 31, 2020, inclusive, with January used as the baseline. The demographic data and referral diagnoses were captured on Excel (Microsoft, Redmond, Washington, USA). Statistical analyses were performed using SPSS, version 22 (IBM Corp., Armonk, New York, USA). Differences between referral volumes were evaluated using χ2 goodness-of-fit tests.RESULTS:
A total of 2293 electronic referrals had been received during the study period. The median age was 63 years. Overall, the referrals had decreased significantly in volume during the study period [χ2(4) = 60.95; P < 0.001]. We have described the patterns in the daily referrals as the pandemic progressed. The reduction in the volume of referrals for degenerative spine cases and traumatic brain injuries was statistically significant (P < 0.001).CONCLUSIONS:
The referrals for degenerative spine and traumatic brain injuries decreased significantly during the pandemic, which can be explained by the lower vehicular traffic and patient avoidance of healthcare services, respectively. The risk of neurological deterioration and increased morbidity and mortality, as a consequence, is of concern, and neurosurgeons worldwide should consider the optimal strategies to mitigate these risks as the pandemic eases.Keywords
Full text:
Available
Collection:
International databases
Database:
MEDLINE
Main subject:
Referral and Consultation
/
Practice Patterns, Physicians'
/
COVID-19
/
Neurosurgery
Type of study:
Experimental Studies
/
Observational study
/
Prognostic study
Limits:
Female
/
Humans
/
Male
/
Middle aged
Country/Region as subject:
Europa
Language:
English
Journal:
World Neurosurg
Journal subject:
Neurosurgery
Year:
2020
Document Type:
Article
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