Comparative analysis of changes in the number of calls to the emergency department of the OBUZ «Ophthalmological Clinical Hospital – Ophthalmological Center» in Kursk against the background of the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic

Abstract

Eye injuries, along with other urgent conditions, are one of the main causes of disability in ophthalmology. The organization of emergency departments in ophthalmic hospitals serves to minimize the time interval between injury and the provision of highly specialized care. Against the background of the COVID-19 pandemic, certain changes have occurred both in the structure of morbidity and in the provision of emergency assistance to the population. The purpose of the work: to study the epidemiology of appeals related to emergency ophthalmological care, according to the emergency department of the OBZ «Ophthalmological Clinical Hospital – Ophthalmological Center» in Kursk in 2012 and 2021 and compare the indicators. Material and methods. As part of the work of the emergency department of eye microsurgery, a retrospective quantitative analysis of appeals with damage to the visual organ and other pathologies was carried out. There is a significant, more than 100-fold increase in the volume of treatment of patients with inflammatory diseases. This is partly due to the transformation of a number of medical institutions into institutions for the treatment of coronavirus infection. COVID-19 infection not only causes inflammatory diseases of various organs and systems, but also contributes to the manifestation of all chronically occurring pathologies. Keywords: emergency care, COVID-19 pandemic, inflammatory diseases.