Trends in interventional stroke device utilization during the COVID-19 pandemic

Area of Science:

• Neurology
• Interventional Cardiology
• Public Health

Background:

• The collateral effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on interventional stroke care remain under-described.
• Stroke device sales data can serve as a proxy for interventional stroke case volumes in the United States.
• Understanding these impacts is crucial for optimizing future pandemic responses in healthcare.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the collateral impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on interventional stroke care.
• To analyze trends in the sales of thrombectomy and cerebral aneurysm coiling devices during the pandemic.
• To assess the correlation between COVID-19 incidence and the volume of interventional stroke procedures.

Main Methods:

• An observational study utilizing a real-time healthcare device sales registry from 945 U.S. hospitals.
• Comparison of device sales data for January-June 2020 against the same periods in 2018 and 2019.
• Correlation analysis (Spearman rank coefficient) between daily COVID-19 case reports and procedural device sales.

Main Results:

• Device sales for both thrombectomy (-3.7%) and cerebral aneurysm coiling (-8.5%) decreased when comparing 2020 to 2019.
• A significant negative correlation was observed between COVID-19 incidence and thrombectomy device sales (CC -0.56, p < 0.0001).
• A similar strong negative correlation was found for aneurysm treatment devices (CC -0.60, p < 0.001), particularly in April 2020.

Conclusions:

• The observed decline in stroke interventional equipment sales indicates a reduction in associated patient case volumes.
• The findings underscore the significant collateral damage the pandemic inflicted on essential interventional stroke care.
• Future pandemic preparedness strategies must incorporate measures to mitigate these negative impacts on critical healthcare services.