What Has Changed In Orthopaedic Emergency Room During Covid - 19 Pandemic: A Single Tertiary Center Experience

Ertuğrul Şahin¹, Ömer Akçalı²

¹Kemalpaşa State Hospital, Orthopaedics and Traumatology Clinic, Izmir, Turkey - ²Dokuz Eylul University, Faculty of Medicine, Department of Orthopaedics and Traumatology, Izmir, Turkey

Introduction: During COVID- 19 pandemic, changes and restrictions in daily life activities brought many differences in mechanism of injury presented to orthopedic emergency. The purpose of this study was investigation the effect of COVID-19 pandemic on incidence and characteristic features of patients with presented to orthopaedic emergency room. 

Materials and methods: Patients with consulted orthopedic emergency room between 11 March – 11 May 2020 and the same time window in 2019 were selected for study. Medical records of patients were retrieved retrospectively and analyzed for demographic features (Age and gender), mechanism of injury and pattern of bones fractured. Patients were divided into three groups based on age: 0-18, 18-64, ≥65 years. Mechanism of injury included trauma, destructive and metabolic.

Results: 1108 patients were evaluated with consulted orthopedic emergency room between 11 March and 11 May in 2020 and 2019. Falling was the most seen injury type in both seasons. There was decrease in falling from height 66.7% for adult but increase 25% for pediatric group. Hit by car injury was decreased 72% in pandemic season compared to normal season in all age groups. Bicycle accident was also increased 100% in both pediatric and adult groups during pandemic season. In adult group punching injury was increased 44,4% during pandemic season compared to normal season. Other injuries (soft tissue injury, foreign bodies, implant insufficiency, dog bites, destructive and metabolic were decreased naturally in pandemic period.

Conclusion: There were 51,1% decrease in fracture during pandemic season. In both seasons falling low – energy was the most common injury mechanisms. New rules in social life for pandemic increased the percentage of personal vehicle accidents, home accidents, punching injury and soft tissue injuries while decreased the percentage of work accidents, out of car accidents and falling from height.