The characteristics of the patients who visited the emergency department with fever, after the chronification of COVID-19 pandemic
- Author:
Yoonje LEE
1
;
Eungon SONG
;
Chang Hae PYO
;
Hyun Kyung PARK
;
Keun Hong PARK
;
Hahn Bom KIM
;
Eun Mi HAM
;
Jin Hyung PARK
;
Jisun KIM
;
Saet Byel KANG
;
Moon Hwan KWAK
;
Dong Sun CHOI
;
Jee Hyeon KIM
Author Information
1. Department of Emergency Medicine, Seoul Medical Center, Seoul, Korea
- Publication Type:Original Article
- From:Journal of the Korean Society of Emergency Medicine
2023;34(3):241-248
- CountryRepublic of Korea
- Language:Korean
-
Abstract:
Objective:This study examined the characteristics of patients visiting the emergency department (ED) with fever after the chronification of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic.
Methods:This retrospective observational study analyzed the medical records of patients who visited the ED with fever from May 1 to October 31, 2021, and the corresponding period in 2019. This study was conducted at a single center in Seoul, Korea.
Results:There was no statistical difference in the comorbidities of the patients of the two groups: the AC (after the COVID-19 pandemic) group and the BC (before the COVID-19 pandemic) group. As for the level of consciousness at the time of ED arrival, there was a significantly larger decrease in consciousness (verbal response or less) in the AC group than in the BC group (P=0.002). In the case of the National Early Warning Score (NEWS), the proportion was higher in the AC group in the moderate-risk and high-risk groups (P=0.003). The median time from symptom onset to ED arrival was 15.7 hours in the BC group and 13.8 hours in the AC group, and there was no significant difference (P=0.137). When leaving the ED, the AC group had a higher admission rate to the ward and intensive care unit than the BC group. There was no statistical difference in the in-hospital mortality between the two groups (2.9% and 2.4%, respectively; P=0.62).
Conclusion:Patients who visited the emergency room with fever after one year of the COVID-19 pandemic showed a similar time from symptom onset to ED arrival compared to patients who visited before the COVID-19 pandemic. In addition, there was no difference in in-hospital mortality among these patients compared to those with fever before the COVID-19 pandemic.
