The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on emergency general surgery: a retrospective study.

BACKGROUND: The COVID-19 pandemic has affected healthcare systems worldwide. The effect of the pandemic on emergency general surgery patients remains unknown. OBJECTIVE: To reveal the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on mortality and morbidity among emergency general surgery cases. DESIGN AND SETTING: Data on patients who were admitted to the emergency department of a tertiary hospital in Samsun, Turkey, and had consultations at the general surgery clinic were analyzed retrospectively. METHODS: Our study included comparative analysis on two groups of patients who received emergency general surgery consultations in our hospital: during the COVID-19 pandemic period (Group 2); and on the same dates one year previously (Group 1). RESULTS: There were 195 patients in Group 1 and 132 in Group 2 (P < 0.001). While 113 (58%) of the patients in Group 1 were women, only 58 (44%) were women in Group 2 (P = 0.013). Considering all types of diagnosis, there was no significant difference between the two groups (P = 0.261). The rates of abscess and delayed abdominal emergency diseases were higher in Group 2: one case (0.5%) versus ten cases (8%); P < 0.001. The morbidity rate was higher in Group 2 than in Group 1: three cases (1.5%) versus nine cases (7%); P = 0.016. CONCLUSIONS: The COVID-19 pandemic has decreased the number of unnecessary nonemergency admissions to the emergency department, but has not delayed patients' urgent consultations. The pandemic has led surgeons to deal with more complicated cases and greater numbers of complications.

Laparoscopic resection of retroperitoneal bronchogenic cyst clinically presenting as adrenal cyst.

Bronchogenic cyst localized in the retroperitoneum is a rare clinical entity. It is a congenital malformation generally occurring in the posterior mediastinum due to the abnormal development of the foregut. We report the case of a retroperitoneal cyst presenting as left adrenal cyst. A 38-year-old female presented with left upper abdominal pain. Endocrinological evaluation was done, and no adrenal hormonal secretion was detected. The cyst was removed laparoscopically. Pathologic examination confirmed it as a bronchogenic cyst. Therefore, bronchogenic cysts should be considered in the differential diagnosis of retroperitoneal cysts. Laparoscopic resection of retroperitoneal cysts results in favorable outcome.

The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on emergency general surgery: a retrospective study

ABSTRACT BACKGROUND: The COVID-19 pandemic has affected healthcare systems worldwide. The effect of the pandemic on emergency general surgery patients remains unknown. OBJECTIVE: To reveal the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on mortality and morbidity among emergency general surgery cases. DESIGN AND SETTING: Data on patients who were admitted to the emergency department of a tertiary hospital in Samsun, Turkey, and had consultations at the general surgery clinic were analyzed retrospectively. METHODS: Our study included comparative analysis on two groups of patients who received emergency general surgery consultations in our hospital: during the COVID-19 pandemic period (Group 2); and on the same dates one year previously (Group 1). RESULTS: There were 195 patients in Group 1 and 132 in Group 2 (P < 0.001). While 113 (58%) of the patients in Group 1 were women, only 58 (44%) were women in Group 2 (P = 0.013). Considering all types of diagnosis, there was no significant difference between the two groups (P = 0.261). The rates of abscess and delayed abdominal emergency diseases were higher in Group 2: one case (0.5%) versus ten cases (8%); P < 0.001. The morbidity rate was higher in Group 2 than in Group 1: three cases (1.5%) versus nine cases (7%); P = 0.016. CONCLUSIONS: The COVID-19 pandemic has decreased the number of unnecessary nonemergency admissions to the emergency department, but has not delayed patients' urgent consultations. The pandemic has led surgeons to deal with more complicated cases and greater numbers of complications.

Is it possible to use transaminases for deciding on surgical or non-operative treatment for blunt liver trauma?

BACKGROUND: We aimed to research the relation of transaminase levels in blunt liver trauma (BLT) with the intensity of the trauma and the use of transaminase levels for deciding on surgical or non-operative treatment. METHODS: In all, 44 patients with BLT diagnosed by computerized tomography (CT) were involved in this retrospective study. By testing the correlation of the transaminase levels and the grade of liver injury with receiver operator characteristics (ROC), area under the curve (AUC) was calculated; besides, the sensitivity, specificity, and cut-off values of transaminases were calculated separately for the grades. Moreover, same method was repeated for the surgically and non-operatively treated patients. Cut-off value was assessed for surgical and non-operative treatments. The efficiency of transaminases in deciding non-operative treatment was compared with that of other methods using ROC test applied on focused abdominal sonography in trauma (FAST), hemodynamic instability, blood replacement rate, aspartate aminotransferase (AST), and alanine aminotransferase (ALT). RESULTS: It was observed that the AUC, sensitivity, and specificity increased correspondingly with the grade rise of transaminase levels in BLT. In the selection of non-operative treatment/surgery, following values have been confirmed: AUC for AST: 0.851 (sensitivity: 86%, specificity: 73%, cut-off value: 498 U/L), AUC for ALT: 0.880 (sensitivity: 86%, specificity: 81%, cut-off value: 498 U/L), AUC for replacement: 0.948 (sensitivity: 86%, specificity: 94%), AUC for hemodynamic instability: 0.902 (sensitivity: 86%, specificity: 94%), and AUC for FAST: 0.642 (sensitivity: 57%, specificity: 75%). CONCLUSIONS: It was found that in BLT, transaminases can predict the injury rating with higher accuracy as the grade rises, and they outrival FAST in terms of determining the need for laparotomy.