Impact of COVID-19 on Spinal Diagnosis and Procedural Volume in the United States
Author Type(s)
Student
Document Type
Article
Publication Date
7-1-2024
DOI
10.1177/21925682231153083
Journal Title
Global Spine Journal
Abstract
STUDY DESIGN: Retrospective analysis of a national database.
OBJECTIVES: COVID-19 resulted in the widespread shifting of hospital resources to handle surging COVID-19 cases resulting in the postponement of surgeries, including numerous spine procedures. This study aimed to quantify the impact that COVID-19 had on the number of treated spinal conditions and diagnoses during the pandemic.
METHODS: Using CPT and ICD-10 codes, TriNetX, a national database, was utilized to quantify spine procedures and diagnoses in patients >18 years of age. The period of March 2020-May 2021 was compared to a reference pre-pandemic period of March 2018-May 2019. Each time period was then stratified into four seasons of the year, and the mean average number of procedures per healthcare organization was compared.
RESULTS: In total, 524,394 patient encounters from 53 healthcare organizations were included in the analysis. There were significant decreases in spine procedures and diagnoses during March-May 2020 compared to pre-pandemic levels. Measurable differences were noted for spine procedures during the winter of 2020-2021, including a decrease in lumbar laminectomy and anterior cervical arthrodesis. Comparing the pandemic period to the pre-pandemic period showed significant reductions in most spine procedures and treated diagnoses; however, there was an increase in open repair of thoracic fractures during this period.
CONCLUSIONS: COVID-19 resulted in a widespread decrease in spinal diagnosis and treated conditions. An inverse relationship was observed between new COVID-19 cases and spine procedural volume. Recent increases in procedural volume from pre-pandemic levels are promising signs that the spine surgery community has narrowed the gap in unmet care produced by the pandemic.
Recommended Citation
Tarawneh, O., Garay-Morales, S., Liu, I., Pakhchanian, H., Kazim, S., Roster, K., McDaniel, L., Tabaie, S., Vellek, J., Raiker, R., Schmidt, M., Bowers, C., Tannoury, T., & Tannoury, C. (2024). Impact of COVID-19 on Spinal Diagnosis and Procedural Volume in the United States. Global Spine Journal, 14 (6), 1714-1727. https://doi.org/10.1177/21925682231153083
