Open AccessMilder impact of the COVID‐19 pandemic on the practice of orthopaedic surgery in Greece and Cyprus than other European countries
Author(s) -
Kalogeropoulos Athanasios,
Savvidou Olga D.,
Bissias Christos,
Sarafis Pavlos,
Savvidis Matthaios,
Tanos Andreas,
Pikoulis Emmanouil,
Papagelopoulos Panayiotis J.,
Exadaktylos Aristomenis,
Eggli Stefan
Publication year - 2023
Publication title -
knee surgery, sports traumatology, arthroscopy
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.806
H-Index - 125
eISSN - 1433-7347
pISSN - 0942-2056
DOI - 10.1007/s00167-022-07159-0
Subject(s) - medicine , orthopedic surgery , pandemic , arthroscopy , covid-19 , computer assisted web interviewing , general surgery , family medicine , physical therapy , surgery , disease , marketing , infectious disease (medical specialty) , business
Purpose The aim of this study was to highlight the impact of the COVID‐19 pandemic on the practice of orthopaedics in Greece and Cyprus. Methods The survey used the online questionnaire from AGA (Gesellschaft für Arthroskopie und Gelenkchirurgie; Society for Arthroscopy and Joint Surgery) to facilitate the comparison between different European countries. The questionnaire was distributed online to members of the HAOST (Hellenic Association of Orthopaedic Surgery and Trauma), the ΟΤΑΜΑΤ (Orthopaedic and Trauma Association of Macedonia and Thrace) and the CAOST (Cypriot Association of Orthopaedic Surgery and Trauma). The questionnaire consisted of 29 questions, which included demographic data, questions on the impact of the pandemic on the practice of orthopaedic surgery and questions on the impact on the personal and family life of orthopaedic surgeons. Results The questionnaire was sent to 1350 orthopaedic surgeons in Greece and Cyprus, 303 of whom responded (response rate 22.44%). 11.2% of the participants reported cancellation of overall orthopaedic procedures. According to 35.6–49.8% of the participants, arthroscopic procedures were continued. As regards elective primary arthroplasties, 35.3% of the participants reported that these continued to be performed at their hospitals. Post‐operative follow‐ups as well as physiotherapy were affected by the pandemic, and changes were also observed in the habits of orthopaedic surgeons in their personal and family lives. Conclusion The orthopaedic service in Greece and Cyprus decreased during the first wave of the COVID‐19 pandemic. Arthroscopic procedures and total joint replacements decreased significantly, but not to the same extent as in other countries. Health systems were not fully prepared for the first wave of the pandemic and the various countries took social measures at different times and to different extents. Thus, studying the impact of the pandemic on the practice of orthopaedic surgery in different countries can help health systems to better prepare for future pandemics; public health can then be shielded and hospitals can continue to provide high‐quality orthopaedic care. Level of evidence Level V.