L Oliver-Welsh1, C Richardson1, D A Ward1. 1. Department of Trauma and Orthopaedics, Kingston Hospital Foundation Trust, Kingston upon Thames, UK.
Abstract
INTRODUCTION: The COVID-19 pandemic resulted in reconfiguration of the NHS. Elective services were stopped and trauma services focused on decreasing patient-clinician interactions and managing injuries nonoperatively wherever possible. The everyday life of the general public changed dramatically with the introduction of a national lockdown to prevent the spread of COVID-19. This paper looks at the experience of a South West London trauma unit. MATERIALS AND METHODS: All patients reviewed in fracture clinic and by the orthopaedic on-call team between 23 March to 23 April 2020 were included. Data on the mechanism of injury and whether this was a usual activity, the injury sustained and its management were collected. RESULTS: A total of 167 trauma injuries were seen, compared with 735 new patients with injuries in the previous month. The number of trauma operations completed decreased by 38%; 55% of injuries occurred inside the home and 44% outside the home during daily exercise. Some 31% of injuries were secondary to a new activity taken up during lockdown. Three open fractures and two polytrauma cases were seen that would have normally been managed at the local major trauma centre. CONCLUSION: Overall, both the number of injuries seen and trauma operations completed during the enforced lockdown decreased. This is probably due to a change in the way the general public are living their lives, and the reconfigurations within the NHS in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. This is an interesting time within trauma and orthopaedic departments, as they continue to adapt to the changing injuries and working environment.
INTRODUCTION: The COVID-19 pandemic resulted in reconfiguration of the NHS. Elective services were stopped and trauma services focused on decreasing patient-clinician interactions and managing injuries nonoperatively wherever possible. The everyday life of the general public changed dramatically with the introduction of a national lockdown to prevent the spread of COVID-19. This paper looks at the experience of a South West London trauma unit. MATERIALS AND METHODS: All patients reviewed in fracture clinic and by the orthopaedic on-call team between 23 March to 23 April 2020 were included. Data on the mechanism of injury and whether this was a usual activity, the injury sustained and its management were collected. RESULTS: A total of 167 trauma injuries were seen, compared with 735 new patients with injuries in the previous month. The number of trauma operations completed decreased by 38%; 55% of injuries occurred inside the home and 44% outside the home during daily exercise. Some 31% of injuries were secondary to a new activity taken up during lockdown. Three open fractures and two polytrauma cases were seen that would have normally been managed at the local major trauma centre. CONCLUSION: Overall, both the number of injuries seen and trauma operations completed during the enforced lockdown decreased. This is probably due to a change in the way the general public are living their lives, and the reconfigurations within the NHS in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. This is an interesting time within trauma and orthopaedic departments, as they continue to adapt to the changing injuries and working environment.
Authors: Elizabeth M Curtis; Robert van der Velde; Rebecca J Moon; Joop P W van den Bergh; Piet Geusens; Frank de Vries; Tjeerd P van Staa; Cyrus Cooper; Nicholas C Harvey Journal: Bone Date: 2016-03-09 Impact factor: 4.398
Authors: Henk F van der Molen; Prativa Basnet; Peter Lt Hoonakker; Marika M Lehtola; Jorma Lappalainen; Monique Hw Frings-Dresen; Roger Haslam; Jos H Verbeek Journal: Cochrane Database Syst Rev Date: 2018-02-05
Authors: Rodrigo Guerra Sabongi; Jaime Piccaro Erazo; Vinicius Ynoe de Moraes; Carlos Henrique Fernandes; João Baptista Gomes Dos Santos; Flávio Faloppa; João Carlos Belloti Journal: Clinics (Sao Paulo) Date: 2019-09-09 Impact factor: 2.365