IMPACT OF MEASURES TO FIGHT THE PANDEMIC COVID-19 ON KNEE ARTHROPLASTIES IN BRAZIL

OBJECTIVE: To assess the impacts of measures to face COVID-19 on total knee arthroplasty procedures in the country, based on data provided by the SUS Information and Informatics Department (DATASUS). METHODS: Cross-sectional study of secondary data in the public domain, available on the website of the Department of Information and Informatics of SUS (DATASUS), containing information about hospital admissions in the SUS. RESULTS: Brazil suffered a 51.82% decrease, on average, in the performance of total knee arthroplasty by the Unified Health System (SUS) in 2020, due to measures to face COVID-19. The analysis by region offers more details on this reduction in the number of procedures. In the Northeast, the decrease was on average 48.02%, whereas in the Center-West it was 65.61%. Southeast, North, and South registered an average decrease of 49.38%, 51.81%, and 55.06%, respectively. CONCLUSION: COVID-19 impacted the realization of TKA in Brazil, with greater and lesser levels of decline observed in different Brazilian regions. In the Southeast region, for example, the states of São Paulo and Minas Gerais were the most affected, mainly due to the large population concentration, as well as Paraná, which has high numbers of procedures and a sharp decrease in 2020. Level of Evidence III, Retrospective Comparative Study.