Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the care of major trauma patients: analysis from the TraumaRegister DGU®

Abstract

The treatment of major trauma patients requires intensive care capacity, which is acritical resource particularly during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. Therefore, the aim of this study was to analyze the impact on major trauma care considering the intensive care treatment of COVID-19 positive patients. Demographic, prehospital, and intensive care treatment data from the TraumaRegister DGU® of the German Trauma Society (DGU) in 2019 and 2020 were analyzed. Only major trauma patients from the state of Bavaria were included. Inpatient treatment data of COVID-19 patients in Bavaria in 2020 were obtained using IVENA eHealth. In total, 8307 major trauma patients were treated in the state of Bavaria in the time period investigated. The number of patients in 2020 (n = 4032) compared to 2019 (n = 4275) was not significantly decreased (p = 0.4). Regarding COVID-19 case numbers, maximum values were reached in the months of April and December with more than 800 intensive care unit (ICU) patients per day. In the critical period (> 100patients with COVID-19 on ICU), aprolonged rescue time was evident (64.8 ± 32.5 vs. 67.4 ± 30.6 min; p = 0.003). The length of stay and ICU treatment of major trauma patients were not negatively affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. The intensive medical care of major trauma patients could be ensured during the high-incidence phases of the COVID-19 pandemic. The prolonged prehospital rescue times show possible optimization potential of the horizontal integration of prehospital and hospital.