The Influence of the COVID-19 Pandemic on the Prevalence, Characteristics, Management, and Outcomes of Acute Appendicitis at the Academic Tertiary Center, Jeddah

Abstract

BACKGROUND: Acute appendicitis is the leading cause of acute abdominal pain that requires immediate intervention. Nonetheless, during COVID-19, hospital visits decreased as a result of serious COVID-19 concerns at that time, resulting in a decreased number of diagnosed cases with acute appendicitis due to COVID-19 restriction issues. OBJECTIVES: To report the percentage numbers, characteristics, applied management, and outcomes of patients with acute appendicitis during the COVID-19 pandemic and compare them to pre-COVID-19 cases. METHODS: A retrospective cohort study included all patients with acute appendicitis in the determined periods "pre-COVID-19" and "during COVID-19" at King Abdul-Aziz Medical City, Academic Tertiary Center, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. Mean and standard deviation were used, while categorical data were reported as frequencies and percentages. Variables were analyzed by the Chi-squared test, Fisher's exact test, and Mann-Whitney test as appropriate. RESULTS: A total of 298 patients were included. The period of the pre-COVID-19 pandemic had 161 (54%) patients, while 137 (46%) were identified during COVID-19. The number of laparoscopic appendectomies performed during COVID-19 was less than the pre-COVID-19 pandemic of 96 cases (70.1%) vs 133 cases (82.6%) (P=0.0106). Uncomplicated appendicitis was the most commonly reported type of appendicitis in both periods: 113 (82.5%) during COVID-19 vs 135 (83.9%) pre-COVID-19, (P=0.7526). Furthermore, the number of patients who presented to the ER between 24 and 48 hours after the onset of symptoms was similar before and during the pandemic: 111 (68.9%) vs 89 (65%). CONCLUSION: Overall, we conclude that during the COVID-19 period, there was a reduction in the number of patients presenting with acute appendicitis and a lower chance of undergoing laparoscopic appendectomy due to COVID-19 restrictions. There was also an increase in perforated appendicitis and a decrease in gangrenous appendicitis.