Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Observational Study
. 2020 Jun-Jul;98(6):320-327.
doi: 10.1016/j.ciresp.2020.04.001. Epub 2020 Apr 7.

SARS-CoV-2 pandemic on the activity and professionals of a General Surgery and Digestive Surgery Service in a tertiary hospital

[Article in English, Spanish]
Mario Álvarez Gallego  1 , Sara Gortázar de Las Casas  1 , Isabel Pascual Migueláñez  2 , Inés Rubio-Pérez  1 , Cristina Barragán Serrano  1 , Estíbaliz Álvarez Peña  1 , Joaquín Díaz Domínguez  1
Affiliations
Observational Study

SARS-CoV-2 pandemic on the activity and professionals of a General Surgery and Digestive Surgery Service in a tertiary hospital

[Article in English, Spanish]
Mario Álvarez Gallego et al. Cir Esp (Engl Ed). 2020 Jun-Jul.

Abstract
in English, Spanish

Introduction: The rapid spread of SARS-CoV-2 infection has led to a radical reorganization of healthcare resources. Surgical Departments need to adapt to this change.

Methods: We performed a prospective descriptive observational study of the incidence of COVID-19 in patients and surgeons of a General Surgical Department in a high prevalence area, between the 1st and 31st of March 2020.

Results: Patients: The incidence of SARS-CoV-2 infection in elective surgery patients was 7% (mean age 59.5 years). All survived. Of 36 patients who underwent emergency surgery, two of them were SARS-CoV-2 positive and one was clinically highly suspicious of COVID-19 (11.1%). All three patients died of respiratory failure (mean age 81 years). Surgeons: There were a total of 12 confirmed SARS-CoV-2+ cases among the surgical department staff (24.4%) (8 out of 34 consultants and 4 out of 15 residents). Healthcare activity: The average number of daily emergency surgical interventions declined from 3.6 in February to 1.16 in March. 42% of the patients who underwent emergency surgery had peritonitis upon presentation.

Conclusions: The fast pace of COVID-19 pandemia should alert surgical departments of the need of adopting early measures to ensure the safety of patients and staff.

Introducción: La rápida expansión de la infección por SARS-CoV-2 ha supuesto una radical reorganización de los recursos sanitarios y la exposición de profesionales al contagio. Los servicios de Cirugía General y del Aparato Digestivo también necesitan adaptarse a este cambio.

Pacientes y métodos: Se realiza un estudio observacional descriptivo prospectivo de los casos de COVID-19 en pacientes y cirujanos de un Servicio de Cirugía General en un área de alta incidencia de infección entre el 1 y el 31 de marzo de 2020.

Resultados: Pacientes: La incidencia de infección por SARS-CoV-2 en los pacientes programados con hospitalización en el postoperatorio inmediato fue del 7%. Su edad media fue de 59,5 años y todos evolucionaron satisfactoriamente en planta. De 36 pacientes intervenidos de urgencia, dos fueron SARS-CoV-2+ y uno altamente sospechoso de COVID-19 (11,1%). Los tres pacientes fallecieron por insuficiencia respiratoria, su edad media era de 81 años. Cirujanos: Hubo un total de 12 casos SARS-CoV-2 + confirmados (24,4%) (8 de 34 adjuntos y 4 de 15 residentes). Actividad asistencial: El número medio de intervenciones quirúrgicas urgentes diarias bajó de 3,6 en febrero a 1,16 en el mes de marzo. El 42% de los pacientes intervenidos a partir de la entrada en vigor de las primeras medidas de aislamiento a nivel regional, presentaban cuadros evolucionados.

Conclusiones: El aumento de casos en la población general de COVID-19 debe alertar a los Servicios de Cirugía General de la necesidad de tomar de medidas de forma precoz que garanticen la seguridad de los pacientes y de los cirujanos.

Keywords: COVID-19; Cirugía; Enfermedades infecciosas; Healthcare personnel; Infectious diseases; Personal sanitario; Surgery.

PubMed Disclaimer

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
A) Daily activity (measured in numbers of admissions and number of urgent surgeries) of on-call general surgery duties in the month of March 2020; B) Urgent care activity in the General Surgery Department (number of admissions and number of urgent surgeries); comparison between the months of March 2019 and March 2020.
Fig. 2
Fig. 2
Daily number of calls to the General Surgery pager during the month of March 2020 (measured in number of total calls from the emergency department and hospital wards).
Fig. 3
Fig. 3
Positive COVID-19 cases in the Community of Madrid and in the General Surgery Department during the month of March 2020.
Fig. 4
Fig. 4
Number of daily positive COVID-19 cases starting March 10, 2020.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. Guan W.-J., Ni Z.-Y., Hu Y., Liang W.-H., Ou C.-Q., He J.-X., et al. Clinical Characteristics of Coronavirus Disease 2019 in China. N Engl J Med [Internet] 2020:1–13. http://www.ncbi.nlm.niZ.-Y Available from: - PMC - PubMed
    1. Adams J.G., Walls R.M. Supporting the Health Care Workforce during the COVID-19 Global Epidemic. JAMA - J Am Med Assoc. 2020;60611:2–3. - PubMed
    1. Anderson R.M., Heesterbeek H., Klinkenberg D., Hollingsworth T.D. How will country-based mitigation measures influence the course of the COVID-19 epidemic? Lancet. 2020;395(10228):931–934. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Ministerio de Sanidad, Consumo y Bienestar Social - Professionals - Enfermedad por nuevo coronavirus, COVID-19 [Internet]. [cited 2020 Mar 31]. Available from: https://www.mscbs.gob.es/en/profesionales/saludPublica/ccayes/alertasAct....
    1. Arshad Ali S., Baloch M., Ahmed N., Arshad Ali A., Iqbal A. The outbreak of Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19)-An emerging global health threat. J Infect Public Health [Internet] 2020;13:644–646. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/32199792 Available from: - PMC - PubMed

Publication types

MeSH terms