Impact of COVID-19 pandemic on acute pancreatitis presentations, management, and in-hospital outcomes: a single-center, retrospective observational study from the northeast of China

BACKGROUND: Since initially detected in late December 2019, the novel coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) outbreak rapidly swept the world, which has profoundly affected healthcare system and clinical practice in the management of gastrointestinal diseases. OBJECTIVES: We aimed to evaluate the impact of COVID-19 pandemic on the pattern of hospital admissions and healthcare services for acute pancreatitis (AP). DESIGN: We conducted a retrospective observational cohort study using the anonymized electronic medical records. METHODS: This single-center, retrospective observational study from a regional medical center in the northeast of China included all consecutively admitted patients with AP from 23 January to 10 June 2020 (during the COVID-19 outbreak in Harbin), compared with the equivalent period of the previous year, in terms of demographics, clinical characteristics, and in-hospital outcomes. RESULTS: In this article, we observed a reduction in AP admissions after the beginning of COVID-19 outbreak. With the prolonged time from symptom onset to hospitalization [32.0 (22.0–72.0) versus 18.0 (12.0–24.0) h; p < 0.001], a higher proportion of AP patients developed acute renal failure (14.0% versus 7.4%, p = 0.004) and acute necrotic collection (16.5% versus 11.2%; p = 0.038) in the COVID-19 era. The percentage of alcohol etiology significantly decreased after the implementation of social restriction measures (11.5% versus 20.4%; p = 0.002), whereas biliary etiology was numerically more common amidst the COVID-19 era (41.6% versus 32.6%; p = 0.014). No significant differences were found in the rates of intensive care unit admission and mortality between the two groups. CONCLUSION: This study preliminarily demonstrated the descending trend and delay in hospital presentations for AP during the outbreak of COVID-19. Given that the pandemic may persist for several years, adjustments of medical services according to the varying degrees of local breakouts are imperative to provide appropriate care for AP patients and diminish the risk of viral transmission. REGISTRATION: ClincialTrials.gov number ChiCTR2100043350.