ENT emergencies during the first wave of COVID-19 pandemic in Spain: Our experience

OBJECTIVES: To analyze the characteristics of the visits attended to in an ENT Emergency Department (ENT-ED) during the first wave of COVID-19, comparing them with the emergencies attended to during the same period of time in 2019. METHODS: Descriptive and analytical observational retrospective study of all emergency consultations between March 1, 2020, and May 21, 2020, carried out by the Otorhinolaryngology–Head and Neck Surgery Department of a tertiary university hospital. The adequacy of consultations was assessed with the Hospital Emergency Suitability Protocol (HESP). The correlation between the emergencies and the SARS-CoV-2 confirmed cases was assessed with a generalized linear model. RESULTS: Although there was a decrease of almost 50% in ENT-ED visits during the first wave of COVID-19, the pattern of most cases remained similar to the pre-COVID-19 era: non-urgent consultations, not previously assessed by Primary Care (PC), being considered inadequate by the HESP. The three main reasons for consultation were otalgia, odynophagia, and epistaxis. The number of ENT-ED visits and the total number of confirmed cases of SARS-CoV-2 in the health area were correlated. CONCLUSIONS: SARS-CoV-2 pandemic was a challenge for the Spanish health system. The critical epidemiological situation experienced during March, April, and May explains the reduction in the number of visits to the ENT-ED. However, this condition did not affect the predominant pattern of visits with respect to the pre-COVID-19 era, which were mostly inadequate. A strengthening of PC and an improvement in the population's health education is essential.