Impact of COVID-19 pandemic on appendectomy in South Korea

초록

Purpose The COVID-19 pandemic status has had an impact on healthcare system over worldwide. This has affected not only the treatment of diseases caused by the COVID-19 virus, but also the treatment of other diseases. Acute appendicitis is the most common abdominal disease requiring emergency surgery. This study aims to examine how much the COVID-19 pandemic has affected the delay of emergency surgery and changes in the clinical course in South Korea. Methods We reviewed retrospectively medical database of patients who were performed surgery with acute appendicitis in Inha university hospital from Jan 2019 to May 2021. We classified patients into before and after COVID pandemic group as of 10 March 2020 when WHO(World Health Organization) declared COVID pandemic status. Result 444 patients had underwent surgery before the COVID pandemic, and 393 patients had underwent surgery after the COVID pandemic. The ASA score was statistically significantly lower, and the proportion of patients with severe morbidity was significantly lower in the after COVID pandemic group. Waiting time from ER(emergency room) to OR(operating room) was about 3 hours longer in the after COVID pandemic group.(519.11 ±486.57min vs 705.27±512.59 min ; p<0.001) But there was no difference in the pathologic result and surgical extent between the two groups. Conclusion The in-hospital treatment time was delayed by about 3 hours due to the COVID pandemic, but there was no change in the clinical course of acute appendicitis. In South Korea, it is thought that emergency surgical treatment is relatively successful despite the COVID pandemic.