We found a match
Your institution may have access to this item. Find your institution then sign in to continue.
- Title
Hospital admissions during Covid-19 lock-down in Germany: Differences in discretionary and unavoidable cardiovascular events.
- Authors
Stöhr, Elisabeth; Aksoy, Adem; Campbell, Meghan; Al Zaidi, Muntadher; Öztürk, Can; Vorloeper, Julia; Lange, Jonas; Sugiura, Atsushi; Wilde, Nihal; Becher, Marc Ulrich; Diepenseifen, Christian; Heister, Ulrich; Nickenig, Georg; Zimmer, Sebastian; Tiyerili, Vedat
- Abstract
Background: A decline in hospitalization for cardiovascular events and catheter laboratory activation was reported for the United States and Italy during the initial stage of the Covid-19 pandemic of 2020. We report on the deployment of emergency services for cardiovascular events in a defined region in western Germany during the government-imposed lock-down period. Methods: We examined 5799 consecutive patients who were treated by emergency services for cardiovascular events during the Covid-19 pandemic (January 1 to April 30, 2020), and compared those to the corresponding time frame in 2019. Examining the emergency physicians' records provided by nine locations in the area, we found a 20% overall decline in cardiovascular admissions. Results: The greatest reduction could be seen immediately following the government-imposed social restrictions. This reduction was mainly driven by a reduction in discretionary admissions for dizziness/syncope (-53%), heart failure (-38%), exacerbated COPD (-28%) and unstable angina (-23%), while unavoidable admissions for ST-elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI), cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) and stroke were unchanged. There was a greater decline in emergency admissions for patients ≥60 years. There was also a greater reduction in emergency admissions for those living in urban areas compared to suburban areas. Conclusions: During the Covid-19 pandemic, a significant decline in hospitalization for cardiovascular events was observed during the government-enforced shutdown in a predefined area in western Germany. This reduction in admissions was mainly driven by "discretionary" cardiovascular events (unstable angina, heart failure, exacerbated COPD and dizziness/syncope), but events in which admission was unavoidable (CPR, STEMI and stroke) did not change.
- Subjects
GERMANY; CARDIOVASCULAR diseases; COVID-19; COVID-19 pandemic; ANGINA pectoris; HOSPITAL admission &; discharge; PANDEMICS
- Publication
PLoS ONE, 2020, Vol 15, Issue 11, p1
- ISSN
1932-6203
- Publication type
Article
- DOI
10.1371/journal.pone.0242653