Safety of elective abdominal and vascular surgery during the COVID-19 pandemic: a retrospective single-center study.
Eur J Med Res
; 26(1): 112, 2021 Sep 23.
Article
in English
| MEDLINE | ID: covidwho-1438306
ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND:
Patients with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) who undergo surgery have impaired postoperative outcomes and increased mortality. Consequently, elective and semi-urgent operations on the increasing number of patients severely affected by COVID-19 have been indefinitely postponed.in many countries with unclear implications on disease progression and overall survival. The purpose of this study was to evaluate whether the establishment of a standardized screening program for acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) is sufficient to ensure high-quality medical and surgical treatment of COVID-19 and non-COVID-19 patients while minimizing in-hospital SARS-CoV-2 transmission.METHODS:
The screening program comprised polymerase chain reaction (PCR) testing of nasopharyngeal swabs and a standardized questionnaire about potential symptoms for SARS-CoV-2 infection. All elective and emergency patients admitted to the surgical department of a tertiary-care hospital center in Lower Franconia, Germany, between March and May 2020 were included and their characteristics were recorded.RESULTS:
Out of the study population (n = 657), 509 patients (77.5%) had at least one risk factor for a potentially severe course of COVID-19 and 164 patients (25%) were active smokers. The average 7-day incidence in Lower Franconia was 24.0/100,000 during the observation period. Preoperative PCR testing revealed four asymptomatic positive patients out of the 657 tested patients. No postoperative SARS-CoV-2 infection or transmission could be detected.CONCLUSION:
The implementation of a standardized preoperative screening program to both COVID-19 and non-COVID-19 patients can ensure high-quality surgical care while minimizing infection risk for healthcare workers and potential in-hospital transmission.Keywords
Full text:
Available
Collection:
International databases
Database:
MEDLINE
Main subject:
Vascular Surgical Procedures
/
Infection Control
/
Elective Surgical Procedures
/
COVID-19 Nucleic Acid Testing
/
COVID-19
Type of study:
Diagnostic study
/
Experimental Studies
/
Observational study
/
Prognostic study
Limits:
Adult
/
Aged
/
Female
/
Humans
/
Male
/
Middle aged
Country/Region as subject:
Europa
Language:
English
Journal:
Eur J Med Res
Journal subject:
Medicine
Year:
2021
Document Type:
Article
Affiliation country:
S40001-021-00583-x
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