Comparison of upper respiratory tract infections during the COVID-19 pandemic period with the pre-pandemic period

This study, which was carried out with the aim of examining the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic, which is still important and up-to-date today, on the emergency department, especially on upper respiratory tract diseases, dates between 01.04.2019-01.01.2020 (Period I) and 01.04.2020-01.01.2021 (Period II) 213147 patients in Period I and 200994 patients in Period II, who applied to Gaziantep University Medical Faculty Emergency Service, were included. As the starting date, the month of April following the date of the first case of Covid-19 in Turkey, 11.03.2020, and when the effects of Covid-19 actually started to be seen, was taken as basis and compared with the same months of the previous year. All patients aged 18 and over who applied to the emergency department during the pandemic and the previous period were included in the study. The patients included in the study were examined retrospectively using age, gender, date of application, and ICD codes. These variables were examined by comparing the pre-pandemic and the pandemic period. During the pandemic period, there was a 5.7% decrease in the total number of applications. A decrease of 55.66% was found in patients diagnosed with upper respiratory tract disease during the pandemic period. Following the declaration of the pandemic, a decrease of 67.9% in applications in April and 59% in May was detected. During the pandemic period, an increase was observed in the percentage rates of male patient admissions in all admissions, mean age values and median ages compared to the pre-pandemic period. While a decrease of 69.31% was observed in April of the Period II, an increase of 68% was observed in November in the applications of patients over the age of 65, who may have more chronic diseases. In Period II, significant decreases were detected in the diagnoses of abdominal pain, soft tissue disorders, headache and chest pain, as well as upper respiratory tract infections, which are the most common emergency department admissions. In the literature, the change in the understanding of the use of emergency services with the pandemic process has been attributed to many factors, some of which are; The fear of being infected, by the elderly, the more severe the Covid-19 infection and its mortality as a result of chronic diseases of the elderly, the implementation of curfews and isolation measures, the increase in the use of personal hygiene and masks, and the decrease in applications to the emergency service in non-emergency situations. As a result, the Covid-19 pandemic process has significantly changed the face of emergency service applications. Keywords: Covid-19, Pandemic, Emergency Department, Upper Respiratory Disease, Restriction