Endoscopic nasopharyngoscopy and ENT specialist safety in the COVID 19 era: the back endoscopy approach to the patient.
Eur Arch Otorhinolaryngol
; 277(9): 2647-2648, 2020 Sep.
Article
in English
| MEDLINE | ID: covidwho-526771
ABSTRACT
PURPOSE:
To propose a way to safely perform endoscopic nasopharyngoscopy in ENT outpatient clinic during the COVID-19 pandemic.METHODS:
This manuscript highlights the importance of endoscopy in daily ENT clinical practice, which is a pivotal procedure in the diagnosis of many head and neck pathologies. However, since the beginning of the COVID-19 outbreak, the authors have witnessed a drastic reduction (91%) in the use of endoscopic nasopharyngoscopy at their institutions. In fact, it is considered at risk of contamination for healthcare professionals, as any upper airway manipulation procedure.RESULTS:
In the "Back approach to the patient" for endoscopic nasopharyngoscopy, the operator positions himself behind the patient and faces the monitor. The endoscopist, not being positioned in front of the patient, should, therefore, be less exposed to airborne transmission of SARS-CoV-2 virus.CONCLUSION:
This simple variation of the physician's position during endoscopic nasopharyngoscopy could potentially reduce the risk of contagion since the operator is not in the trajectory of droplets and/or aerosols.Keywords
Full text:
Available
Collection:
International databases
Database:
MEDLINE
Main subject:
Pneumonia, Viral
/
Otorhinolaryngologic Surgical Procedures
/
Nasopharynx
/
Coronavirus Infections
/
Endoscopy
/
Pandemics
/
Otolaryngologists
Type of study:
Observational study
/
Prognostic study
Limits:
Humans
Language:
English
Journal:
Eur Arch Otorhinolaryngol
Journal subject:
Otolaryngology
Year:
2020
Document Type:
Article
Affiliation country:
S00405-020-06093-6
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