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[Effect COVID-19 pandemic in an emergency department in Argentina]

María Florencia Grande Ratti1,2, Ana S Pedretti3, María de la Paz Rodríguez3

  • 1Área de Investigación en Medicina Interna, Hospital Italiano de Buenos Aires, Buenos Aires, Argentina.

Medicina
|October 11, 2021
PubMed

Insights

The COVID-19 pandemic significantly reduced emergency department visits by 45.9% in a Buenos Aires hospital. Despite fewer overall visits, critically ill patients and those arriving by ambulance increased, with symptoms like fever and cough being most common.

Area of Science:

  • Public Health
  • Epidemiology
  • Emergency Medicine

Background:

  • The COVID-19 pandemic has profoundly impacted healthcare systems globally.
  • Understanding its effect on emergency department (ED) utilization is crucial for resource allocation and patient care.
  • This study examines ED visit trends in a major hospital during the pandemic.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To analyze the changes in emergency department visit numbers and patient characteristics during the COVID-19 pandemic.
  • To identify the primary reasons for consultation during this period.
  • To assess the pandemic's impact on hospital admission patterns and patient acuity.

Main Methods:

  • Retrospective analysis of monthly emergency department visit data from January 2019 to December 2020.
  • Comparison of patient demographics, reasons for visit, and admission status between 2019 and 2020.
  • Statistical analysis to determine the significance of observed changes.

Main Results:

  • Total ED visits decreased by 45.9% in 2020 compared to 2019 (176,370 vs. 95,421).
  • A significant drop in visits occurred post-lockdown, with April 2020 showing a 77.1% reduction.
  • Ambulance arrivals increased from 5.1% to 10.4%, and complex sector patients rose from 5.3% to 11.5%.
  • Unscheduled hospitalizations doubled from 6.8% to 12.1% in 2020.
  • Top 2020 reasons for visit included fever, odynophagia, abdominal pain, cough, and headache, likely COVID-19 related.

Conclusions:

  • The COVID-19 pandemic led to a halving of emergency department visits at this major hospital.
  • The pandemic shifted patient profiles towards more acute and severe conditions requiring hospitalization.
  • Public health measures and patient-reported symptoms highlight the direct and indirect effects of the pandemic on emergency care.

Keywords:
ArgentinaCOVID-19data analysisemergency medical services

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