Orthopedic surgery residents reported increased shoulder procedure volumes during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Background: The purpose of this study is to evaluate the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on shoulder procedure volumes reported to the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education by orthopedic surgery residents. Methods: We performed a retrospective review of Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education case logs reporting data from graduating orthopedic surgery residents during the academic years of 2006-2022. Data were queried for all patients for the following shoulder Current Procedural Terminology codes: incision, excision, intro or removal, repair/revision/reconstruction, fracture and/or dislocation, manipulation, arthroscopy, trauma, and total procedures performed. Individual Results: Reported mean total shoulder procedures per resident steadily increased each year from 2017 to 2022, but the only significant increase was seen when comparing the graduating classes of 2020 to 2021 (157.9 vs. 165.7, Discussion/Conclusion: COVID-19 did not have a negative impact on logged shoulder procedure volume. Orthopedic surgery residents graduating during the COVID-19 pandemic reported more shoulder procedures than those graduating prepandemic. However, shoulder procedure log trends should be longitudinally investigated, as preceding years of procedural opportunities may underestimate the pandemic's impact.