Effects of COVID-19 Isolation Practices on Neurosurgical Traumas

Abstract

Aim: Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is an infectious disease caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) and was declared a pandemic by the World Health Organization (WHO) on March 11, 2020. We aimed to investigate the frequency of head and spinal injuries caused by trauma before and after the pandemic. To identify the situations that should be taken into account in isolation measures due to the possibility of the emergence of such epidemics in the globalizing world.
 Material and Method: Medical records of 2595 patients were accessed and 1309 patients with missing patient data were excluded from the study. Normal distribution of continuous variables was assessed using Kolmogorov-Smirnov test. Continuous variables were compared using Mann-Whitney U test and categorical variables were compared using Chi-square test or Fisher’s exact test.
 Results: Data of 1286 patients were analyzed. Some parameters differ before and after the pandemic, age, injury mechanism, type of lesion, spinal trauma. The average age is 33.9 and the male-female ratio is 3/2. The most frequent admission to the emergency room was in the summer. In our data, there were significant differences in age, gunshot wounds in the trauma mechanism, soft tissue injury and contusion in lesions, and spinal trauma.
 Conclusion: The Covid pandemic has caused imperative changes in every aspect of life. This situation also caused a change in the reasons for applying to hospitals. It has been shown that the isolations performed because of Covid-19 did not affect the diagnosis, treatment, and mortality of the patients, although they changed the mechanisms of head and spine trauma. Even with compulsory isolation for public health, the approach to neurosurgical traumas that may occur should not change. It should not be forgotten that in the presence of the Covid 19 pandemic, it continues in other clinical situations.