Impact of COVID-19 on Spinal Diagnosis and Procedural Volume in the United States

Authors

Omar H. Tarawneh, New York Medical College, School of Medicine, Valhalla, NY, USA.
Steven Garay-Morales, George Washington University School of Medicine, Washington, DC, USA.
Ivan Z. Liu, The Medical College of Georgia, Augusta University, Augusta, GA, USA.
Haig Pakhchanian, George Washington University School of Medicine, Washington, DC, USA.
Syed Faraz Kazim, Department of Neurosurgery, University of New Mexico Hospital (UNMH), Albuquerque, NM, USA.
Katie Roster, New York Medical College, School of Medicine, Valhalla, NY, USA.
Lea McDaniel, George Washington University School of Medicine, Washington, DC, USA.
Sean A. Tabaie, Department of Orthopedic Surgery, Children's National Hospital, Washington, DC, USA.
John Vellek, New York Medical College, School of Medicine, Valhalla, NY, USA.
Rahul Raiker, West Virginia University School of Medicine, Morgantown, WV, USA.
Meic H. Schmidt, Department of Neurosurgery, University of New Mexico Hospital (UNMH), Albuquerque, NM, USA.
Christian A. Bowers, Department of Neurosurgery, University of New Mexico Hospital (UNMH), Albuquerque, NM, USA.
Tony Tannoury, Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, Boston University, Boston, MA, USA.
Chadi Tannoury, Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, Boston University, Boston, MA, USA.

Document Type

Journal Article

Publication Date

7-1-2024

Journal

Global spine journal

Volume

14

Issue

6

DOI

10.1177/21925682231153083

Keywords

COVID-19; TriNetX; operative volume; pandemic; spine surgery; surgery deferment; trends

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.

APA Citation

Tarawneh, Omar H.; Garay-Morales, Steven; Liu, Ivan Z.; Pakhchanian, Haig; Kazim, Syed Faraz; Roster, Katie; McDaniel, Lea; Tabaie, Sean A.; Vellek, John; Raiker, Rahul; Schmidt, Meic H.; Bowers, Christian A.; Tannoury, Tony; and Tannoury, Chadi, "Impact of COVID-19 on Spinal Diagnosis and Procedural Volume in the United States" (2024). GW Authored Works. Paper 5398.
https://hsrc.himmelfarb.gwu.edu/gwhpubs/5398

Department

School of Medicine and Health Sciences Student Works