A scoping review on the changes in vascular surgical practice during the early phases of the COVID-19 pandemic

Keng Siang Lee; Sruthi Ranganathan; Andrew M T L Choong; Jun Jie Ng

doi:10.1053/j.semvascsurg.2021.07.002

A scoping review on the changes in vascular surgical practice during the early phases of the COVID-19 pandemic

Semin Vasc Surg. 2021 Sep;34(3):63-73. doi: 10.1053/j.semvascsurg.2021.07.002. Epub 2021 Aug 8.

Authors

Keng Siang Lee¹, Sruthi Ranganathan², Andrew M T L Choong³, Jun Jie Ng⁴

Affiliations

¹ SingVaSC, Singapore Vascular Surgical Collaborative, Singapore; Bristol Medical School, University of Bristol, Bristol, UK; Cardiovascular Research Institute, National University of Singapore, Singapore.
² SingVaSC, Singapore Vascular Surgical Collaborative, Singapore; Department of Medicine, University of Cambridge, Cambridge CB2 OQQ, UK; Cardiovascular Research Institute, National University of Singapore, Singapore.
³ SingVaSC, Singapore Vascular Surgical Collaborative, Singapore; Department of Medicine, University of Cambridge, Cambridge CB2 OQQ, UK; Department of Surgery, Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore, Singapore; Division of Vascular and Endovascular Surgery, National University Heart Centre, Singapore; Cardiovascular Research Institute, National University of Singapore, Singapore.
⁴ SingVaSC, Singapore Vascular Surgical Collaborative, Singapore; Department of Medicine, University of Cambridge, Cambridge CB2 OQQ, UK; Department of Surgery, Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore, Singapore; Cardiovascular Research Institute, National University of Singapore, Singapore. Electronic address: jun_jie_ng@nuhs.edu.sg.

Abstract

The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has had a profound effect on the delivery of vascular surgery to patients around the world. In order to conserve resources and reduce the risk of COVID-19 infection, many institutions have postponed or cancelled surgical procedures. In this scoping review, we aim to review current literature and recapitulate the significant changes in elective and emergency vascular surgery during the COVID-19 pandemic. We conducted this scoping review in accordance with the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analysis extension for Scoping Reviews. We included all articles that had reported the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on elective or emergency vascular surgery. A total of 28 articles were included in this scoping review. We identified eight distinct themes that were relevant to our study topic. We report global, regional, and local data on vascular surgical cases. We also discuss the adoption of vascular surgery triage systems, emergence of global collaborative vascular surgery research groups, increased use of endovascular techniques and locoregional anesthesia, delayed presentation of vascular surgery conditions, and poorer outcomes of patients with chronic limb threatening ischemia. This scoping review provides a snapshot of the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on elective and emergency vascular surgery.

Keywords: COVID-19; Elective Surgical Procedure; Emergencies; Health Services Research; Pandemics; SARS-CoV-2.

Publication types

Review
Systematic Review

MeSH terms

COVID-19*
Elective Surgical Procedures
Humans
Pandemics*
SARS-CoV-2
Triage