• An Pediatr (Barc) · Aug 2020

    Observational Study

    [Influence of the coronavirus 2 (SARS-Cov-2) pandemic on acute appendicitis].

    • María Velayos, Antonio Jesús Muñoz-Serrano, Karla Estefanía-Fernández, Ma Carmen Sarmiento Caldas, Lucas Moratilla Lapeña, Manuel López-Santamaría, and Juan Carlos López-Gutiérrez.
    • Servicio de Cirugía Pediátrica. Hospital Universitario La Paz, Madrid, España. Electronic address: mariavelayos@icloud.com.
    • An Pediatr (Barc). 2020 Aug 1; 93 (2): 118-122.

    IntroductionAcute appendicitis (AA) is the most common abdominal surgical emergency. No specific studies have been found that evaluate the impact of the coronavirus 2 (SARS-Cov-2) pandemic on AA and its surgical management. An analysis was made on the influence of this new pathology on the clinical course of AA.Material And MethodsRetrospective observational study was conducted on patients operated on for AA from January to April 2020. They were classified according to the time of the appendectomy, before the declaration of the state of alarm (pre-COVID-19), and after its declaration (post-COVID-19) in Spain, one the most affected countries in the world. An evaluation was made of demographic variables, duration of symptoms, type of appendicitis, surgical time, hospital stay, and postoperative complications.ResultsThe study included 66 patients (41 pre-COVID-19; 25 post-COVID-19) with mean age of 10.7 ± 3 and 9.3 ± 3.1; P = .073, respectively. Fever was found in a higher number of post-COVID-19 patients (52 vs. 19.5%; P = 0.013), as well as a higher CRP (72.7 ± 96.2 vs. 31.3 ± 36.2 mg/dL; P = 0.042). This group presented with a higher proportion of complicated appendicitis when compared to pre-COVID-19 (32 vs. 7.3%; P = 0.015). The mean hospital stay was longer in the post-COVID-19 group (5.6 ± 5.9 vs. 3.2 ± 4.3 days; P = 0.041). No differences were found in the time of onset of symptoms or surgical time.ConclusionsThe SARS-Cov-2 pandemic influenced the time of diagnosis of appendicitis, as well as its course, and mean hospital stay. Peritonitis was more frequently seen. As a result of the significant circumstances, delaying diagnosis and treatment of AA during SARS-Cov-2 pandemic, inappropriate management of this common surgical disorder has been noticed.Copyright © 2020 Asociación Española de Pediatría. Publicado por Elsevier España, S.L.U. All rights reserved.

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