CERVICAL COLUMN INJURIES AND THEIR MANAGEMENT DURING THE SARS COV 2 PANDEMIC

Abstract

Aim of the study: The Sars-Cov 2 pandemic has created an unprecedented situation worldwide and in the medical community, affecting trauma services and in-hospital trauma organization. The aim of this study was to monitor post-traumatic cases of the cervical column with intact spinal cord during the pandemic, compared to the period before the pandemic, in terms of diagnosis, therapy and evolution, but also epidemiology and anatomy. Material and methods: The study was conducted by monitoring post-traumatic cases with injuries to the cervical column, during 14 months before the pandemic and 14 months during the pandemic, at the Emergency Clinical Hospital “Prof. Dr. Nicolae Oblu”, Iași. Statistical data from hospitalizations and CT scans, MRI scans and radiographs of 339 patients were retrospectively examined. Results: We noticed a tendency for uniformity in the distribution of fractures in the 7 cervical vertebrae. The most common etiological mechanisms remained falling from the same height and level. CT scans were twice as frequent, and the average number of investigations per patient was higher during the pandemic. Conclusion: The evolution of patients with cervical column trauma was mostly positive despite specific restrictions during the Sars-Cov 2 pandemic, offset by a higher dose of radiation for patients, in some cases unjustified.

Keywords

• sars-cov 2
• pandemic
• cervical column
• trauma