TY - JOUR
T1 - The Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Bariatric Surgery
T2 - Results from a Worldwide Survey
AU - for the Collaborators
AU - Lazaridis, Ioannis I.
AU - Kraljević, Marko
AU - Schneider, Romano
AU - Klasen, Jennifer M.
AU - Schizas, Dimitrios
AU - Peterli, Ralph
AU - Kow, Lilian
AU - Delko, Tarik
AU - Noel, Patrick
AU - Singhal, Rishi
AU - Girodet, Matthieu
AU - Soprani, Antoine
AU - Brehant, Olivier
AU - Moszkowicz, David
AU - Coueffe, Xaviera
AU - Lanne, Jean Sebastien
AU - Rosenblum, Ilan
AU - Moldovanu, Radu
AU - Pflieger, Hannah
AU - Kuperas, Cyrille
AU - Martinez Duartez, Pedro
AU - Luyer, Misha D.P.
AU - Arnalsteen, Laurent
AU - Hazebroek, Eric J.
AU - Sykora, Martin
AU - Kennedy, Colleen
AU - Hauswirth, Fabian
AU - Tchanderli-Braham, Riad
AU - Le Page, Sébastien
AU - Boerma, Evert Jan G.
AU - Chousleb, Elias
AU - Langenhoff, Barbara
AU - ElFawal, Mohamad Hayssam
AU - Paolino, Luca
AU - Martini, Francesco
AU - Johanet, Hubert
AU - Barthes, Thierry
AU - Halabi, Maen
AU - Del Prete, Marco
AU - Fiolo, Felipe Eduardo
AU - Blanchard, Claire
AU - Bashir, Ahmad
AU - Hagen, Monika
AU - Techagumpuch, Ajjana
AU - Dan, Sebastien
AU - Catheline, Jean Marc
AU - Georgeac, Constantin
AU - Lefter, Liviu Paul
AU - Lechaux, David
AU - Rogers, Ann M.
N1 - Funding Information:
Dr. Schneider reports grants from University Basel, grants from Department of Surgery, University Hospital Basel, grants from Freiwillige akademische Gesellschaft Basel, grants from Stiftung für chirurgische Forschung und Spitalmanagement, and grants from Gebauer Stiftung, outside the submitted work. Dr. Peterli reports grants from Johnson&Johnson Switzerland, outside the submitted work.
PY - 2020/11/1
Y1 - 2020/11/1
N2 - Background: The ongoing “coronavirus disease 19” (COVID-19) pandemic has had a strong effect on the delivery of surgical care worldwide. Elective surgeries have been canceled or delayed in order to reallocate resources to the treatment of COVID-19 patients. Currently, the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on bariatric and metabolic surgical practice remains unclear. Methods: An internet-based online survey was performed among bariatric surgeons worldwide. The survey was sent to bariatric surgeons via the International Bariatric Club Facebook group and by electronic mail via the International Federation for the Surgery of Obesity and metabolic disorders (IFSO) secretariat to members of the associated national IFSO societies. Results: One hundred sixty-nine (n = 169) bariatric surgeons participated in the survey. The majority of the respondents postponed preoperative upper gastrointestinal tract endoscopies, appointments in the outpatient clinic and bariatric operations. Most surgeons performed video calls for follow-up appointments instead of meeting the patients in the outpatient clinics. Laparoscopy was still the preferred treatment for surgical emergencies, but a trend towards conservative treatment of acute appendicitis and acute cholecystitis was shown. Rapid preoperative COVID-19 testing availability was poor; therefore, routine screening of emergency bariatric cases was not widely provided. A wide variance occurred regarding precautions and personal protection equipment among the participants. Conclusion: The COVID-19 pandemic showed a strong impact on bariatric surgical practice regarding surgical and outpatient planning as well as personnel management. Coordinated effort from the national bariatric societies should focus on strict implementation of the current recommendations regarding precaution measures and personal protection equipment. Further studies should evaluate how this impact will evolve in the near future.
AB - Background: The ongoing “coronavirus disease 19” (COVID-19) pandemic has had a strong effect on the delivery of surgical care worldwide. Elective surgeries have been canceled or delayed in order to reallocate resources to the treatment of COVID-19 patients. Currently, the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on bariatric and metabolic surgical practice remains unclear. Methods: An internet-based online survey was performed among bariatric surgeons worldwide. The survey was sent to bariatric surgeons via the International Bariatric Club Facebook group and by electronic mail via the International Federation for the Surgery of Obesity and metabolic disorders (IFSO) secretariat to members of the associated national IFSO societies. Results: One hundred sixty-nine (n = 169) bariatric surgeons participated in the survey. The majority of the respondents postponed preoperative upper gastrointestinal tract endoscopies, appointments in the outpatient clinic and bariatric operations. Most surgeons performed video calls for follow-up appointments instead of meeting the patients in the outpatient clinics. Laparoscopy was still the preferred treatment for surgical emergencies, but a trend towards conservative treatment of acute appendicitis and acute cholecystitis was shown. Rapid preoperative COVID-19 testing availability was poor; therefore, routine screening of emergency bariatric cases was not widely provided. A wide variance occurred regarding precautions and personal protection equipment among the participants. Conclusion: The COVID-19 pandemic showed a strong impact on bariatric surgical practice regarding surgical and outpatient planning as well as personnel management. Coordinated effort from the national bariatric societies should focus on strict implementation of the current recommendations regarding precaution measures and personal protection equipment. Further studies should evaluate how this impact will evolve in the near future.
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U2 - 10.1007/s11695-020-04830-8
DO - 10.1007/s11695-020-04830-8
M3 - Article
C2 - 32654018
AN - SCOPUS:85087833869
VL - 30
SP - 4428
EP - 4436
JO - Obesity Surgery
JF - Obesity Surgery
SN - 0960-8923
IS - 11
ER -