Surgery in the Time of COVID-19 Pandemic
1 other identifier
observational
707
1 country
4
Brief Summary
The ongoing coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) which started in China, was declared on the 11th of March as a global pandemic 2020 by the World Health Organization (WHO). Governments around the world have introduced differing forms of lock downs since the start of the pandemic demanding citizens to confine to their homes and go out only in necessity to minimize exposure to the virus. The response was observed in the emergency departments and the number of patients who presented for non-Covid issues drastically reduced. Hospitals activated their mass casualty management plans and have reorganized and overstretched their capacity to be able to absorb both the influx of patients with the virus and those with other conditions. Part of that reorganization was reducing the surgical activity. The main focus was shifted to patients who are considered urgent and elective surgery were postponed. Hence only surgical emergencies were maintained. Many did not present to the emergency department for fear to contract the virus and from a sense of national and global solidarity against that pandemic. Whereas these measures are essential to prevent the spread of the virus, it may be hypothesized that for non-Covid issues, including surgical emergencies, patients may present late to the emergency department due to fear of contracting the infection in hospital. This would delay their management and lead to a worsened symptomology on presentation requiring a more complex surgical intervention with an increased complication profile. The investigators present initial data from four major hospitals in Belgium, characterizing surgical emergencies that were managed since the start of the pandemic and discuss the repercussion the pandemic has on management of urgent surgical patients and most likely evolution of surgery after the pandemic.
Trial Health
Trial Health Score
Automated assessment based on enrollment pace, timeline, and geographic reach
participants targeted
Target at P75+ for all trials
Started Apr 2020
Shorter than P25 for all trials
4 active sites
Health score is calculated from publicly available data and should be used for screening purposes only.
Trial Relationships
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Study Timeline
Key milestones and dates
Study Start
First participant enrolled
April 14, 2020
CompletedFirst Submitted
Initial submission to the registry
December 23, 2020
CompletedFirst Posted
Study publicly available on registry
December 24, 2020
CompletedPrimary Completion
Last participant's last visit for primary outcome
March 15, 2021
CompletedStudy Completion
Last participant's last visit for all outcomes
March 15, 2021
CompletedMarch 16, 2021
March 1, 2021
11 months
December 23, 2020
March 15, 2021
Conditions
Outcome Measures
Primary Outcomes (22)
Surgery code
Type of surgery as defined by the surgery code
5 minutes
Urgency
Degree of urgency of the surgery
5 minutes
Type of anesthesia
Type of anesthesia
5 minutes
Delay between surgery and first symptoms
Delay between surgery and first symptoms
5 minutes
Surgery duration
Surgery duration (anesthesia included)
5 minutes
Hospital stay (in days)
Hospital stay (in days)
5 minutes
Intensive care unit stay (in days)
Intensive care unit stay (in days)
5 minutes
Post-op complications
Post-op complications
5 minutes
Covid status before surgery
Covid status before surgery (positive=1, negative=0 )
5 minutes
Covid status post-surgery
Covid status post-op (positive=1, negative=0 )
5 minutes
COVID19 Diagnosis by CT scan
COVID19 Diagnosis confirmed by CT scan of the thorax (Yes=1, No=0)
5 minutes
COVID19 Diagnosis by swab test
COVID19 Diagnosis by swab test (Yes=1, No=0)
5 minutes
COVID 19 Diagnosis by antibody test
COVID 19 Diagnosis by antibody test (Yes=1, No=0)
5 minutes
COVID19 symptoms - dry cough
dry cough (Yes=1, No=0)
5 minutes
COVID19 symptoms - fever
fever (Yes=1, No=0)
5 minutes
COVID19 symptoms - myalgia
myalgia (Yes=1, No=0)
5 minutes
COVID19 symptoms - anosmia
anosmia (Yes=1, No=0)
5 minutes
COVID19 symptoms -respiratory distress
respiratory distress (Yes=1, No=0)
5 minutes
Treatment for COVID19 - Plaquenil
Plaquenil (Yes=1, No=0)
5 minutes
Treatment for COVID19 - Antivirals
Antivirals (Yes=1, No=0)
5 minutes
Need for intubation
Need for intubation (Yes=1, No=0)
5 minutes
Death
Mortality (Yes=1, No=0)
5 minutes
Secondary Outcomes (5)
Age
5 minutes
Gender
5 minutes
Ethnicity
5 minutes
BMI
5 minutes
Comorbidities
5 minutes
Study Arms (1)
Surgical intervention
Patients who had a surgical procedure since the start of the lockdown in Belgium due to the COVID19 pandemic (16 of March 2020 to the 12 of April 2020.
Interventions
Eligibility Criteria
All the patient that have benefited of a surgical intervention since the start of the COVID19 pandemic in Belgium and specifically the 16 th of March 2020 (lock down) to 12 of april 2020. The involved hospitals are: Brugmann hospital, UZ Brussel Hospital, Erasme Hospital and Saint Pierre Hospital.
You may qualify if:
- Patients who had a surgical procedure since the start of the lock down in Belgium due to the COVID19 pandemic (16 of March 2020 to the 12 of April 2020).
You may not qualify if:
- None
Contact the study team to confirm eligibility.
Sponsors & Collaborators
Study Sites (4)
St Pierre
Brussels, 1000, Belgium
CHU Brugmann
Brussels, 1020, Belgium
Erasme
Brussels, 1070, Belgium
UZ Brussel
Brussels, 1090, Belgium
MeSH Terms
Conditions
Condition Hierarchy (Ancestors)
Study Officials
- STUDY DIRECTOR
Yasser Farid
CHU Brugmann
Study Design
- Study Type
- observational
- Observational Model
- COHORT
- Time Perspective
- RETROSPECTIVE
- Sponsor Type
- OTHER
- Responsible Party
- PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR
- PI Title
- Medical Director
Study Record Dates
First Submitted
December 23, 2020
First Posted
December 24, 2020
Study Start
April 14, 2020
Primary Completion
March 15, 2021
Study Completion
March 15, 2021
Last Updated
March 16, 2021
Record last verified: 2021-03
Data Sharing
- IPD Sharing
- Will not share