Impact of COVID-19 Upon Changes in Emergency Room Visits with Chest Pain of Possible Cardiac Origin
Abstract
Background
A decrease in Emergency Department (ED) visits for cardiac conditions has recently been reported from the US and Western Europe due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The data are still scant, and the correlation between cardiac symptoms and confirmed diagnoses are not available. There are no reports on changes in ED volumes at a national level, or from countries in the Asia-Middle Eastern region.
Methods
We report data from national referral centers for tertiary care and cardiac care centers in Qatar, which see >80% of cardiac emergencies in the country.
Results
We analyzed 102,033 ED visits in the COVID-era (March-April 2020 and 2019) and determined the proportion presenting for cardiac symptoms and their confirmed diagnoses. We observed a 16-37% decline in ED volumes overall, with a 25-50% decline in patients presenting with cardiac symptoms in March-April 2020 compared with March-April 2019. Among those presenting with cardiac symptoms, we observed a 24-43% decline in cardiac diagnoses.
Conclusions
A sharp decline in patients presenting with cardiac symptoms was observed in the COVID-era. A post-COVID surge in patients with these conditions may be anticipated and preparations should be made to address it.
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