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. 2021 Sep 8;18(18):9461.
doi: 10.3390/ijerph18189461.

Experience of a Neuro-Emergency Expert in the Emergency Department during One Year of the COVID-19 Pandemic

Yong-Won Jung  1 , Sang-Ook Ha  1 , Jin-Hyouk Kim  2 , Won-Seok Yang  1 , Young-Sun Park  1
Affiliations

Experience of a Neuro-Emergency Expert in the Emergency Department during One Year of the COVID-19 Pandemic

Yong-Won Jung et al. Int J Environ Res Public Health. .

Abstract

We aimed to evaluate the overall clinical characteristics of patients treated by a neuro-emergency expert dedicated to the emergency department (ED) as an attending neurologist during the COVID-19 pandemic. We included adult patients who visited the ED between 1 January and 31 December 2020 and were treated by a neuro-emergency expert. We retrospectively obtained and analyzed the data on patients' clinical characteristics and outcome. The neuro-emergency expert treated 1155 patients (mean age, 62.9 years). The proportion of aged 18-40 years was the lowest, and the most common modes of arrival were public ambulance (50.6%) and walk-in (42.3%). CT and MRI examinations were performed in 94.4 and 33.1% of cases, respectively. The most frequent complaints were dizziness (31.8%), motor weakness (24.2%), and altered mental status (15.8%). The ED diagnoses were acute ischemic stroke (19.8%), benign paroxysmal positional vertigo (14.2%), vestibular neuritis (9.9%), and seizure (8.8%). The mean length of stay in the ED was 207 min. Of the patients, 55.0% were admitted to the hospital, and 41.8% were discharged for outpatient follow-up. Despite the longer stay and the complexity and difficulty of neurological diseases during the COVID-19 pandemic, the accurate diagnosis and treatment provided by a neuro-emergency expert can be presented as a good model in the ED.

Keywords: emergency department; neurologist; stroke; vertigo.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
The monthly number of patients treated by a neuro-emergency expert in the emergency department between 1 January and 31 December 2020.
Figure 2
Figure 2
The initial Korean Triage and Acuity Scale (KTAS) and re-triaged KTAS findings.
Figure 3
Figure 3
Chief complaints of the enrolled patients.
Figure 4
Figure 4
Emergency department diagnoses of the enrolled patients.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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