TY - JOUR
T1 - COVID-19 impact on an oncologic emergency department visits
T2 - observational study
AU - Ram, Aurélie
AU - Pagès, Arnaud
AU - Cubilier, Edouard
AU - Daoudi, Nesrine
AU - Vandergheynst, Frederic
AU - Scotte, Florian
AU - Antoun, Sami
AU - Merad, Mansouriah
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© Author(s) (or their employer(s)) 2024.
PY - 2024/5/1
Y1 - 2024/5/1
N2 - Objective This study aimed at evaluating the impact of COVID-19 on emergency department (ED) visits in a tertiary cancer centre and providing information on the features of the unplanned events during the first wave of COVID-19 pandemic. Methods This retrospective observational study based on data from ED reports was divided into three periods of 2months each around the first lockdown announcement of 17 March 2020: pre-lockdown, lockdown and post-lockdown. Results A total of 903 ED visits were included in the analyses. The mean (±SD) daily number of ED visits did not change during the lockdown period (14.6±5.5) when compared with the periods before (13.6±4.5) and after lockdown (13.7±4.4) (p=0.78). The proportion of ED visits for fever and respiratory disorders increased significantly to 29.5% and 28.5%, respectively (p<0.01) during lockdown. Pain, the third most frequent motive, remained stable with 18.2% (p=0.83) throughout the three periods. Symptom severity also showed no significant differences in the three periods (p=0.31). Conclusion Our study shows that ED visits during the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic remained stable for our patients regardless of the symptom’s severity. The fear of an in-hospital viral contamination appears weaker than the need for pain management or for the treatment of cancer-related complications. This study highlights the positive impact of cancer ED in the first-line treatment and supportive care of patients with cancer.
AB - Objective This study aimed at evaluating the impact of COVID-19 on emergency department (ED) visits in a tertiary cancer centre and providing information on the features of the unplanned events during the first wave of COVID-19 pandemic. Methods This retrospective observational study based on data from ED reports was divided into three periods of 2months each around the first lockdown announcement of 17 March 2020: pre-lockdown, lockdown and post-lockdown. Results A total of 903 ED visits were included in the analyses. The mean (±SD) daily number of ED visits did not change during the lockdown period (14.6±5.5) when compared with the periods before (13.6±4.5) and after lockdown (13.7±4.4) (p=0.78). The proportion of ED visits for fever and respiratory disorders increased significantly to 29.5% and 28.5%, respectively (p<0.01) during lockdown. Pain, the third most frequent motive, remained stable with 18.2% (p=0.83) throughout the three periods. Symptom severity also showed no significant differences in the three periods (p=0.31). Conclusion Our study shows that ED visits during the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic remained stable for our patients regardless of the symptom’s severity. The fear of an in-hospital viral contamination appears weaker than the need for pain management or for the treatment of cancer-related complications. This study highlights the positive impact of cancer ED in the first-line treatment and supportive care of patients with cancer.
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85152640713&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1136/spcare-2023-004184
DO - 10.1136/spcare-2023-004184
M3 - Article
C2 - 36813536
AN - SCOPUS:85152640713
SN - 2045-435X
VL - 14
SP - E1354-E1360
JO - BMJ Supportive and Palliative Care
JF - BMJ Supportive and Palliative Care
IS - e1
ER -