Impact of COVID-19 pandemic on emergency department visits for drowning at one Texas children's hospital.

Background: Drowning is a leading cause of death for children. Fatal and nonfatal drowning incidents often require emergency care. During the COVID-19 pandemic, there were many changes to people's daily activities due to restrictions on public places, such as swimming pools, and to personal precautions taken to avoid exposure to COVID. This study aimed to assess differences in emergency department (ED) visits and patient demographics, scene factors, and drowning severity for children treated for drowning during the COVID pandemic compared with the two prior years at one pediatric hospital in Texas.

Methods: This 4-year retrospective study used data from a hospital-maintained submersion registry of patients treated for drowning to assess differences in drowning ED visits and patient factors during COVID (April 1, 2020 - March 30, 2022) and the two years immediately prior to the COVID pandemic (April 1, 2018 - March 30, 2020).

Results: Of 166 patients treated for drowning, 85 were pre-COVID and 81 were during COVID. Results showed a decrease in total ED visits, but no change in drowning ED visits or the rate of drowning visits per 10,000 ED visits. During the pandemic, children treated for drowning were more likely to have private insurance and less likely to be uninsured. There were no significant differences in other patient or incident factors.

Conclusions: Results suggest patients continued to seek emergency treatment for drowning during the pandemic despite decreases in overall ED usage. Further studies are needed to explore potential shifts in the patient population or the setting where drownings occurred.