AN OVERVIEW OF THE RHEUMATOLOGY OUTPATIENT CLINIC VISITS IN THE FIRST 16 MONTHS OF THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC: SINGLE-CENTRE EXPERIENCE

Year 2023, , 106 - 112, 03.04.2023

Hüseyin Kaplan , Gizem Cengiz , Senem Şaş , Emre Şenköy

https://doi.org/10.34108/eujhs.1174356

Abstract

The aim of this study is to present a general picture of patients who applied to the rheumatology outpatient clinic in the first 16 months of the COVID-19pandemic. Patients who applied to the rheumatology outpatient clinic between March 2020 and August 2021 were included in the study. Patients’ clinical and demographic characteristics, the received drug treatments at their last admissions, and the outpatient clinic visits of patients within the specified 16-month period were evaluated retrospectively. A total of 869 patients were included, and their mean age was 48.51 ± 12.84 years; of these, 658 (75.71%) were female and 211 (24.29%) were male. The most common disease diagnosis was rheumatoid arthritis (29.57%). The average number of hospital visits in 2021 was significantly higher than in 2020. Also, patients who received both biological disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs (bDMARDs) and conventional synthetic disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs (csDMARDs)/immunosuppressives had a significantly higher number of admissions than those who did not (for all, p<0.05). The patients were divided into two groups based on their age as over and under 65 years of age, the number of outpatient clinic admissions was similar between the groups (p=0.620).We determined that the year of admission, gender, and the drugs used had significant effects on the number of applications during this period. These and other effects of the pandemic on rheumatic diseases should be demonstrated in multicenter prospective studies.

Keywords

COVID-19, outpatient clinic, rheumatology

Supporting Institution

None

Project Number

None

Thanks

None

COVID-19 PANDEMİSİNİN İLK 16 AYINDA ROMATOLOJİ POLİKLİNİK VİZİTLERİNE GENEL BİR BAKIŞ: TEK MERKEZ DENEYİMİ

Abstract

Bu çalışmanın amacı, COVID-19 pandemisinin ilk 16 ayında romatoloji polikliniğine başvuran hastaların genel bir resmini sunmaktır. Mart 2020-Ağustos 2021 tarihleri arasında romatoloji polikliniğine başvuran hastalar çalışmaya dahil edildi. Hastaların klinik ve demografik özellikleri, son başvurularında kullandıkları ilaç tedavileri ve belirlenen 16 aylık süre içerisinde poliklinik ziyaretleri retrospektif olarak değerlendirildi. Toplam 869 hasta dahil edildi ve hastaların ortalama yaşları 48.51 ± 12.84, 658'i (%75.71) kadın, 211'i (%24.29) erkekti. En sık görülen hastalık tanısı romatoid artrit (%29.57) idi.2021'deki ortalama hastane ziyareti sayısı 2020'den istatistiksel anlamlı olarak daha yüksekti. Ayrıca, hem biyolojik hastalık modifiye edici antiromatizmal ilaçlar (bDMARD'lar) hem de konvansiyonel sentetik hastalık modifiye edici antiromatizmal ilaçlar (csDMARD'lar)/immünosupresifler alan hastalar almayanlara göre daha yüksek başvuru sayısına sahipti (tümü için, p<0.05). Hastalar yaşlarına göre 65 yaş üstü ve altı olmak üzere iki gruba ayrıldığında poliklinik başvuru sayıları gruplar arasında benzerdi (p=0.620).Bu dönemde başvuru sayıları üzerine başvuru yılı, cinsiyet ve kullanılan ilaçların önemli etkileri olduğunu belirledik. Pandeminin romatizmal hastalıklar üzerindeki bu ve diğer etkileri çok merkezli prospektif çalışmalarla gösterilmelidir.

Keywords

COVID-19, poliklinik, romatoloji

Project Number

None

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