The Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Gastrointestinal Endoscopy Activity in a Tertiary Care Center from Northeastern Romania.
Healthcare (Basel)
; 9(1)2021 Jan 19.
Article
in English
| MEDLINE | ID: covidwho-1038634
ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND:
The outbreak of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has led to significant changes in endoscopy units worldwide, with potential impact on patients' welfare as well as on endoscopy training. We aimed to assess the real-life impact of COVID-19 on the endoscopy unit in a tertiary care center from Romania.METHODS:
A 6.5-month period during the COVID-19 pandemic was compared to a similar period from 2019.RESULTS:
A 6.2-fold decrease of endoscopic procedures was noted. Colonoscopies were reduced from 916 to 42, p < 0.001; flexible sigmoidoscopies from 189 to 14, p = 0.009; upper gastrointestinal (GI) endoscopies from 2269 to 401, p = 0.006; and ERCP from 234 to 125, p < 0.001. The percentage of emergency procedures increased (38.8% vs. 26.2%, p < 0.001), as well as the rate of endoscopies performed for upper GI bleeding (42.5% vs. 24.4%, respectively, p < 0.001). The detection of cancers was considerably reduced (57 compared to 249, p = 0.001). There were fewer complications and higher success rates (7.6% vs. 19.2%, p < 0.001, and 94.2% vs. 90.7%, respectively). Fellows participation was also reduced from 90% to 40.9% (p < 0.001).CONCLUSIONS:
The COVID-19 pandemic has significantly altered the workflow of the endoscopy unit, lowering the number of procedures performed and potentially compromising the early detection of cancers.
Full text:
Available
Collection:
International databases
Database:
MEDLINE
Type of study:
Experimental Studies
Language:
English
Year:
2021
Document Type:
Article
Affiliation country:
Healthcare9010100
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