Decreased Medical Care During the COVID-19 Pandemic - A Comprehensive Analysis of Radiological Examinations.
Rofo
; 193(8): 937-946, 2021 Aug.
Article
in English
| MEDLINE | ID: covidwho-1139768
ABSTRACT
OBJECTIVES:
As a cross-section discipline within the hospital infrastructure, radiological departments might be able to provide important information regarding the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on healthcare. The goal of this study was to quantify changes in medical care during the first wave of the pandemic using radiological examinations as a comprehensive surrogate marker and to determine potential future workload.METHODS:
A retrospective analysis of all radiological examinations during the first wave of the pandemic was performed. The number of examinations was compared to time-matched control periods. Furthermore, an in-depth analysis of radiological examinations attributed to various medical specialties was conducted and postponed examinations were extrapolated to calculate additional workload in the near future.RESULTS:
A total of 596,760 examinations were analyzed. Overall case volumes decreased by an average of 41â% during the shutdown compared to the control period. The most affected radiological modalities were sonography (-54â%), X-ray (-47â%) followed by MRI (-42â%). The most affected medical specialty was trauma and orthopedics (-60â% case volume) followed by general surgery (-49â%). Examination numbers increased during the post-shutdown period leading to a predicted additional workload of up to 22â%.CONCLUSION:
This study shows a marked decrease in radiological examinations in total and among several core medical specialties, indicating a significant reduction in medical care during the first COVID-19 shutdown. KEY POINTS · Number of radiological examinations decreased by 41â% during the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic.. · Several core medical specialties were heavily affected with a reduction of case volumes up to 60â%.. · When extrapolating postponed examinations to the near future, the overall workload for radiological departments might increase up to 22â%.. CITATION FORMAT · Fleckenstein FN, Maleitzke T, Böning G etâal. Decreased Medical Care During the COVID-19 Pandemic - A Comprehensive Analysis of Radiological Examinations. Fortschr Röntgenstr 2021; 193 937â-â946.
Full text:
Available
Collection:
International databases
Database:
MEDLINE
Main subject:
Radiology
/
Radiology Department, Hospital
/
Radiography
/
Workload
/
Pandemics
/
COVID-19
Type of study:
Observational study
/
Prognostic study
/
Randomized controlled trials
Limits:
Humans
Language:
English
Journal:
Rofo
Year:
2021
Document Type:
Article
Affiliation country:
A-1368-5047
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