University of Wisconsin Guidelines for Treatment of Facial Trauma While Minimizing the Risk of COVID-19 Transmission.

BACKGROUND: The COVID-19 pandemic has forced many practices to completely change the interface between health care providers and patients. Patients presenting with facial trauma present a special risk for COVID-19 transmission, as contact with respiratory and ocular secretions is common, and so special precautions must be taken in managing them.
METHODS: We created guidelines and a triage/management algorithm for patients presenting with facial trauma to decrease the risk of COVID-19 transmission.
CONCLUSIONS: In this paper, we present a set of guidelines and a triage algorithm we have successfully implemented to mitigate the spread of COVID-19 while managing facial trauma. We believe that these guidelines can help other providers restructure their practices during this pandemic. Copyright© Board of Regents of the University of Wisconsin System and The Medical College of Wisconsin, Inc.