The COVID-19 Pandemic and Emergencies in Otolaryngology–Head and Neck Surgery: An Analysis of Patients Presenting to Emergency Rooms in South-West Germany: A Bi-Center Study
Abstract
:1. Introduction
2. Materials and Methods
3. Results
3.1. Characteristics of the Study Population
3.2. The Number of Emergencies Declines after the Onset of the Pandemic
3.3. The Change in Patient Numbers Is Mainly Due to Protracted and Non-Urgent Cases
3.4. Diagnoses with the Sharpest Decline Were All Inflammatory OHNS Diseases
4. Discussion
5. Conclusions
Supplementary Materials
Author Contributions
Funding
Institutional Review Board Statement
Informed Consent Statement
Data Availability Statement
Conflicts of Interest
References
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OHNS Category | Definition | MTS/ATS Category (MTS Description) |
---|---|---|
Immediate | Conditions that could lead to permanent severe damage or death without instant treatment. | 1 (Immediate) 2 (Very urgent) |
Urgent | Conditions that impose no immediate mortal danger or acute risk for severe or permanent damage but could deteriorate into an “Immediate” emergency if medical care is not provided. | 3 (Urgent) |
Protracted | Symptoms or diseases that have been present for a prolonged period and do not require emergency or urgent care. | 4 (Normal) 5 (Non-urgent) |
GP/non-urgent | Conditions not requiring treatment by a medical specialist. | 5 (Non-urgent) |
2018 | 2019 | 2020 | |||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
ER | EP | Ratio EP/ER | ER | EP | Ratio EP/ER | ER | EP | Ratio EP/ER | |
Quarter 1 | 916 | 1099 | 1.20 | 812 | 1074 | 1.32 | 807 | 1159 | 1.44 |
Quarter 2 | 884 | 1014 | 1.15 | 966 | 1268 | 1.31 | 558 | 720 | 1.29 |
Difference | −3.5% | −7.7% | +18.9% | +18.1% | −30.8% | −37.8% |
2019 | 2020 | Change in % | p | |
---|---|---|---|---|
Immediate | 1.9 (±1.4) | 1.7 (±1.5) | −11% | p = 0.2371 |
Urgent | 3.6 (±2.2) | 2.8 (±1.8) | −22% | p < 0.0001 |
Protracted | 3.0 (±2.3) | 1.7 (±0.9) | −43% | p < 0.0001 |
GP/non-urgent | 3.1 (±3.2) | 1.8 (±1.2) | −42% | p = 0.0011 |
Percentiles | Cluster of Diagnoses | Amount 2019 (March to July) | Amount 2020 (March to July) | Difference 2019 -> 2020 | Level of Significance |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
>0% | Tumor bleeding | 4 | 24 | +250% | 0.0060 ** |
<10% | Epistaxis | 166 | 161 | −3.0% | 0.6263 |
Functional problem/globus sensation | 31 | 30 | −3.2% | 0.9054 | |
Foreign body nose/ear | 54 | 51 | −5.6% | 0.7790 | |
10–50% | Abscess—other | 14 | 12 | −14.3% | 0.8336 |
Sudden sensorineural hearing loss | 21 | 16 | −23.8% | 0.3805 | |
Vertigo | 45 | 32 | −28.9% | 0.1072 | |
Abscess—tonsillar | 31 | 21 | −32.3% | 0.2249 | |
Dyspnea | 18 | 11 | −38.9% | 0.0851 | |
Postoperative bleeding | 24 | 13 | −45.8% | 0.0688 | |
Other | 370 | 197 | −46.8% | <0.0001 *** | |
Traumatic injury | 107 | 55 | −48.6% | 0.0002 *** | |
50–100% | Skin infection | 43 | 21 | −51.2% | 0.0060 ** |
Otitis externa | 73 | 35 | −52.1% | 0.008 *** | |
Tonsillitis | 81 | 36 | −55.6% | 0.0010 *** | |
Sinusitis | 39 | 16 | −59.0% | 0.0006 ** | |
Otitis media | 108 | 32 | −70.4% | <0.0001 *** |
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Wolpert, S.; Knoblich, N.; Holderried, M.; Becker, S.; Schade-Mann, T. The COVID-19 Pandemic and Emergencies in Otolaryngology–Head and Neck Surgery: An Analysis of Patients Presenting to Emergency Rooms in South-West Germany: A Bi-Center Study. Diseases 2024, 12, 194. https://doi.org/10.3390/diseases12080194
Wolpert S, Knoblich N, Holderried M, Becker S, Schade-Mann T. The COVID-19 Pandemic and Emergencies in Otolaryngology–Head and Neck Surgery: An Analysis of Patients Presenting to Emergency Rooms in South-West Germany: A Bi-Center Study. Diseases. 2024; 12(8):194. https://doi.org/10.3390/diseases12080194
Chicago/Turabian StyleWolpert, Stephan, Nora Knoblich, Martin Holderried, Sven Becker, and Thore Schade-Mann. 2024. "The COVID-19 Pandemic and Emergencies in Otolaryngology–Head and Neck Surgery: An Analysis of Patients Presenting to Emergency Rooms in South-West Germany: A Bi-Center Study" Diseases 12, no. 8: 194. https://doi.org/10.3390/diseases12080194