Evidence map›Paper›PMID 33610862›Full record

ArticleWorld neurosurgery2021

Effect of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Patient Presentation and Perception to a Neurosurgical Outpatient Clinic.

Daniel Pinggera, Johannes Kerschbaumer, Lukas Grassner, Matthias Demetz, Sebastian Hartmann, Claudius Thomé

Open access · greenAbstract read
In one paragraph

Article in World neurosurgery, 2021. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 4 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
4citing papers in PubMed
0.8field-weighted citation impact, top 25% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

4 citing papers in PubMed, 9 citations in OpenAlex.

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4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

6 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.

Daniel PinggeraDepartment of Neurosurgery, Medical University Innsbruck, Innsbruck, Austria. Electronic address: daniel.pinggera@tirol-kliniken.at.
Johannes KerschbaumerDepartment of Neurosurgery, Medical University Innsbruck, Innsbruck, Austria.
Lukas GrassnerDepartment of Neurosurgery, Medical University Innsbruck, Innsbruck, Austria.
Matthias DemetzDepartment of Neurosurgery, Medical University Innsbruck, Innsbruck, Austria.
Sebastian HartmannDepartment of Neurosurgery, Medical University Innsbruck, Innsbruck, Austria.
Claudius ThoméDepartment of Neurosurgery, Medical University Innsbruck, Innsbruck, Austria.
Innsbruck Medical University · AT

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundThe world currently faces the novel COVID-19 pandemic, with cutbacks in patient care. Little is known about the effects of a pandemic on the presentation and admission to an outpatient clinic. Our aim was to gain a better understanding of the effects of reduced neurosurgical care access from the patient perspective, especially in terms of anxiety and urgency of treatment, and to improve outpatient management in case of a potential second wave and potential restrictions on health care.

methodsWe performed a questionnaire study over a period of 4 weeks following the COVID-19 lockdown at our academic neurosurgical department. A 15-item questionnaire was distributed to the patients with 3 additional questions to be answered by the treating neurosurgeon.

resultsA total of 437 questionnaires were analyzed. Overall anxiety to visit a general practitioner or the outpatient facility within the hospital was very low among patients. A quarter of all appointments had to be postponed due to COVID-19, in 0.6% postponement was perceived as incorrect by the treating neurosurgeon. We noted that 43% did not get an appointment due to the restrictions, 20% did not want to bother the medical system, and only 4% were afraid to get infected in the hospital.

conclusionsDespite COVID-19, patients in need of neurosurgical service were hardly afraid to visit doctors and/or hospitals. Nonetheless, because legal requirements, access has been restricted, causing potential collateral damage in a small subset of neurosurgical patients.

Indexed as

Ambulatory Care FacilitiesAmbulatory Surgical ProceduresCOVID-19PandemicsPatientsAdolescentAdultAgedAged, 80 and overAnxietyAppointments and SchedulesAttitudeCommunicable Disease ControlEmergency Medical ServicesFemaleHealth Services AccessibilityCOVID-19NeurosurgeryOutpatient clinic

Identifiers

PMID33610862
PMCPMC7891092
OpenAlexW3129747336

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.