Characteristics and operation outcomes of neuro-oncology patients after COVID-19 pandemic — A case series

• Published in: Interdisciplinary neurosurgery : Advanced techniques and case management 2021-09, Vol.25, p.101172-101172, Article 101172
• Main Authors: Zou, Yichun, Zhang, Jiangjiang, Zhang, Tingbao, Feng, Yu, Xiong, Zhongwei, Xu, Chengshi, Gong, Pian, Si, Jichun, Chen, Jincao
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Case Reports & Case Series; COVID-19; Neuro-oncology; Pandemic
• ISSN: 2214-7519; 2214-7519
• DOI: 10.1016/j.inat.2021.101172

•The complexity and criticality of neuro-oncology after the COVID-19 pandemic have an upward trend.•The surgical effect of glioma patients has significantly decreased after COVID-19 pandemic.•Despite the shortage of medical resources, early surgery is still recommended for glioma patients. COVID-19 has been spreading worldwide at hitherto unknown speed, and the treatment of neuro-oncology patients without COVID-19 has been greatly affected. To compare the medical records and surgical results of surgical patients before and after the pandemic. We collected a total of 80 patients form April 2020 to May 2020 after pandemic and from April 2019 to May 2019 before pandemic. The patient's demographics, past medical history, comorbidities, imaging, pathology, laboratory teat, and Karnofsky Performance Score (KPS) were analyzed. The most common presenting symptom was intracranial hypertension and neurological deficit. Hypertension and diabetes were the most common comorbid diseases. The pre-operation KPS were 83.21 ± 15.60, 80 ± 14.77, 78.57 ± 12.83 and 74.14 ± 12.72, respectively. The post-operation KPS were 94.64 ± 8.65, 95.45 ± 6.56, 91.43 ± 10.82 and 84.21 ± 22.55, respectively. The tumor volume was larger and the midline shift distance was greater after the pandemic than before. For pathological grade, meningiomas were mostly grade I, while gliomas were mainly grade III and IV. Although affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, patients with glioma should be operated as soon as possible to obtain better surgical results, however, for patients with meningiomas, their operation can be postponed slightly when the patients are tolerable.