Has the Number of Upper Gastrointestinal Bleeding Cases Presenting to the Emergency Department Decreased During the COVID-19 Pandemic?: A Single-Center Experience

ABSTRACT

Objective: In the period of the coronavirus disease-19 (COVID-19) pandemic, upper gastrointestinal endoscopy was either postponed or canceled, except for emergencies, due to the high risk of transmission. Our study aimed to evaluate the effect of the COVID-19 pandemic on patients with upper gastrointestinal bleeding presenting to the emergency department and to compare it with the data before the pandemic. Material(s) and Method(s) In this single-center, retrospective study, patients were divided into 2 groups pre-COVID-19 (pre-C) (March 2019-March 2020) and post-COVID-19 (post-C) (March 2020-March 2021). Patients who presented to the emergency department with upper gastrointestinal bleeding during these periods and underwent endoscopic examination were included in the study. Result(s) Endoscopy for upper gastrointestinal bleeding was urgently performed in 125 patients in the pre-C period and in 89 (29% decrease) patients in the post-C period. The Glasgow-Blatchford Score was higher in the pre-C period (p=0.02). Peptic ulcers were the most common cause of bleeding in both groups. High-risk peptic ulcer (forrest 1a/1b/2a/2b), and malignancy were observed more frequently in the post-C period (p=0.003, p=0.04;respectively). Endoscopic combined treatment rate was higher in the post-C group (p<0.001). Re-bleeding ratios were similar for both the groups (p=0.48). Conclusion(s) During the post-C period, the number of upper gastrointestinal bleeding cases admitted to the emergency department decreased significantly. However, the rate of high-risk peptic ulcer and malignancy in the etiology of upper gastrointestinal bleeding increased in the post-C period. Copyright © 2022 by Turkiye Klinikleri.