Impact of Spanish Public Health Measures on Emergency Visits and COVID19 diagnosed cases during the pandemic in Madrid

INTRODUCTION: Changes in Public Health recommendations may have changed the number of emergency visits and COVID-19 diagnosed cases in an Emergency Department in Madrid. MATERIAL AND METHODS: This retrospective case series study included all consecutive patients in a tertiary and urban ED in Madrid from 1(st) to 31(st) March. The sample was divided: NonCOVID-19, Non-investigated COVID-19, Possible COVID-19, Probable COVID-19, Confirmed COVID-19. Differences between public health periods were tested by ANOVA for each cohort, and by ANCOVA including the number of PCR tests (%) as covariate. RESULTS: A total of 7,163 (4,071 Non-COVID-19, 563 Non-investigated COVID-19, 870 Possible, 648 Probable and 1,011 Confirmed COVID-19) cases were included. Public Health measurements applied during each period showed a clear effect on the case proportion for the five cohorts. CONCLUSION: The variability of case definitions and diagnostic test criteria may have impact on the number of emergency visits and COVID-19 diagnosed cases in Emergency Department.