The Covid-19 influence in the ENT Department of Timisoara

Introduction The global health system’s approach to the COVID-19 epidemic has changed. This study’s goal is to document variations in the frequency and cause of ENT consultations in the emergency department (ED) as well as our number of admissions during the COVID-19 pandemic in comparison to those that occurred the year before.

Materials and methods  So we compared data from adult and pediatric patients hospitalized in our department between December 1, 2019 and December 1, 2020 (the time corresponding to the covid infection) to data from the same period a year earlier, between December 1, 2018 and December 1, 2019. A statistic was also compiled on the number of presentations adult and pediatric patients at our department’s emergency room. Gender, age, sex, pathology type, and environment of origin were all evaluated parameters.

Results In our departament were admited in covid period approximately 1713 patients and 7000 patients we admited in our ED departament. The three most common reasons for seeking treatment were otalgia, odynophagia, and epistaxis. During the pandemic, global ED admissions (except for dyspnea or COVID-19-related symptoms) declined considerably At the same time, ENT consultations were reduced in adults and in kids.

Conclusions The number of ED visits, the number of patients admitted to our department, and the number of ENT consultations all significantly decreased as a result of infection fear and the forced lock down. These findings could imply that some ED referrals could be postponed, but a pandemic will likely result in a significant delay in diagnosis.

Publikationsverlauf

Artikel online veröffentlicht:
12. Mai 2023