Keywords:
Professional issues, CT, MR, Ultrasound, Computer Applications-Detection, diagnosis, Outcomes
Authors:
F. Pellegrino, R. Bisi, D. Cavedagna, S. Leprotti, M. Giganti; Ferrara/IT
DOI:
10.26044/ecr2021/C-15274
Purpose
Italy was one of the countries most affected by the COVID-19 pandemic during the first months of the 2020 and the central Italian Government had to adopt strict measures to limit the spread of SARS-CoV-2, the causative agent of COVID-19, in the population, as the Sistema Sanitario Nazionale has been rapidly overloaded by the abrupt surge of COVID-19 patients [1]. In this context, a drop in the number of accesses to Emergency Departments and hospitalizations related to several serious pathologies, such as stroke or coronary disease, has been reported [2,3]. Radiology Departments had to maintain an adequate level of diagnostic and interventional support to their respective hospitals while preparing for the eventuality of having to face a surge of COVID-19 cases. Changes to working protocols and procedures to limit the spread of the virus between patients and healthcare workers were implemented, since it has been observed that SARS-CoV-2 may be transmitted even by asymptomatic patients [4] and that the virus may spread through aerosol or fomites [5], with numerous cases of nosocomial transmission [6,7]. The purpose of this observational retrospective study is to evaluate the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the diagnostic activities of the Radiology Department of the University Hospital Arcispedale Sant'Anna in Ferrara during the first lockdown in Italy. The secondary objective of this paper revolves verifying how many patients required investigations following a trauma, to estimate if stay-at-home regulations or the fear of contagion induced people to avoid seeking medical assistance.