How the First Year of the COVID-19 Pandemic Impacted Patients' Hospital Admission and Care in the Vascular Surgery Divisions of the Southern Regions of the Italian Peninsula

• Published in: Journal of personalized medicine Vol. 12; no. 7; p. 1170
• Main Authors: Martelli, Eugenio, Sotgiu, Giovanni, Saderi, Laura, Federici, Massimo, Sangiorgi, Giuseppe, Zamboni, Matilde, Martelli, Allegra R, Accarino, Giancarlo, Bianco, Giuseppe, Bonanno, Francesco, Bracale, Umberto M, Cappello, Enrico, Cioffi, Giovanni, Colacchio, Giovanni, Crinisio, Adolfo, De Vivo, Salvatore, Dionisi, Carlo Patrizio, Flora, Loris, Impedovo, Giovanni, Intrieri, Francesco, Iorio, Luca, Maritati, Gabriele, Modugno, Piero, Monaco, Mario, Natalicchio, Giuseppe, Palazzo, Vincenzo, Petrosino, Fernando, Pompeo, Francesco, Pulli, Raffaele, Razzano, Davide, Ruggieri, Maurizio R, Ruotolo, Carlo, Sangiuolo, Paolo, Vigliotti, Gennaro, Volpe, Pietro, Biello, Antonella, Boggia, Pietro, Boschetti, Michelangelo, Centritto, Enrico M, Condò, Flavia, Cucciolillo, Lucia, D'Amodio, Amodio S, De Laurentis, Mario, Desantis, Claudio, Di Lella, Daniela, Di Nardo, Giovanni, Disabato, Angelo, Ficarelli, Ilaria, Gasparre, Angelo, Giordano, Antonio N, Luongo, Alessandro, Massara, Mafalda, Molinari, Vincenzo, Padricelli, Andrea, Panagrosso, Marco, Petrone, Anna, Pisanello, Serena, Prunella, Roberto, Tedesco, Michele, Settembrini, Alberto M
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Switzerland MDPI AG 19.07.2022; MDPI
• Subjects: Amputation; Aortic aneurysms; Asymptomatic; Coronaviruses; COVID-19; Disease; Hospitals; Ischemia; Leg ulcers; Pandemics; Patients; Precision medicine; Stenosis; Surgery; Surveillance; Vascular surgery; Italy; COVID-19; amputation; carotid stenosis; chronic limb-threatening ischemia; deep venous thrombosis; abdominal aortic aneurysm
• ISSN: 2075-4426; 2075-4426
• DOI: 10.3390/jpm12071170

Background: To investigate the effects of the COVID-19 lockdowns on the vasculopathic population. Methods: The Divisions of Vascular Surgery of the southern Italian peninsula joined this multicenter retrospective study. Each received a 13-point questionnaire investigating the hospitalization rate of vascular patients in the first 11 months of the COVID-19 pandemic and in the preceding 11 months. Results: 27 out of 29 Centers were enrolled. April-December 2020 (7092 patients) vs. 2019 (9161 patients): post-EVAR surveillance, hospitalization for Rutherford category 3 peripheral arterial disease, and asymptomatic carotid stenosis revascularization significantly decreased (1484 (16.2%) vs. 1014 (14.3%), p = 0.0009; 1401 (15.29%) vs. 959 (13.52%), p = 0.0006; and 1558 (17.01%) vs. 934 (13.17%), p < 0.0001, respectively), while admissions for revascularization or major amputations for chronic limb-threatening ischemia and urgent revascularization for symptomatic carotid stenosis significantly increased (1204 (16.98%) vs. 1245 (13.59%), p < 0.0001; 355 (5.01%) vs. 358 (3.91%), p = 0.0007; and 153 (2.16%) vs. 140 (1.53%), p = 0.0009, respectively). Conclusions: The suspension of elective procedures during the COVID-19 pandemic caused a significant reduction in post-EVAR surveillance, and in the hospitalization of asymptomatic carotid stenosis revascularization and Rutherford 3 peripheral arterial disease. Consequentially, we observed a significant increase in admissions for urgent revascularization for symptomatic carotid stenosis, as well as for revascularization or major amputations for chronic limb-threatening ischemia.