Patients' characteristics and 30-day mortality for those undergoing elective surgeries during the COVID-19 pandemic in Bangladesh

• Published in: PloS one 2023-08, Vol.18 (8), p.e0289878-e0289878
• Main Authors: Ahmed, Shakera, Karim, Anwarul, Chowdhury, Tanvir Kabir, Pulock, Orindom Shing, Tamanna, Nowrin, Akter, Mastura, Biswas, Puja, Afroz, Fahmida, Pinky, Susmita Dey, Alabbi, Anika Nahrin, Jamil, Tasnuba Raisa, Tasnim, Zarin, Dev, Dipa, Marma, Mraching, Aziz, Tasmiah Tahera, Hakim, Hafiz Ahmed Nazmul, Basher, A K M Khairul, Shahin, Nur Hossain Bhuiyan, Banu, Tahmina
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Analysis; Anesthesia; Bangladesh; Comorbidity; Coronaviruses; COVID-19; Diabetes; Diabetes mellitus; Digestive system; Disease transmission; Elective surgery; Epidemics; Evidence-based medicine; Hospitals; Hypertension; Infection; Infections; Medical research; Medicine and Health Sciences; Medicine, Experimental; Methods; Mortality; Ostomy; Pandemics; Patient outcomes; Patients; Pediatrics; Polymerase chain reaction; Surgeons; Surgery; Surgery, Elective
• ISSN: 1932-6203; 1932-6203
• DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0289878

The COVID-19 pandemic has significantly impacted the surgical practice throughout the world, including elective surgical care. This study investigated the characteristics of patients undergoing elective surgery, the prevalence of COVID-19 infection, the surgical procedures performed, and 30-day mortality in general and pediatric surgical settings in selected tertiary-level hospitals in Bangladesh from November 2020 to August 2021. This serial cross-sectional study included 264 patients scheduled for elective surgeries during the study period. All patients underwent COVID-19 real-time polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) testing within 24 hours before surgery. Data on age, sex, common comorbidities, surgical procedures, and 30-day mortality were collected and analyzed. Furthermore, comparisons were made between COVID-19 positive and negative patients. The prevalence of COVID-19 infection among patients was 10.6%. Older age, a history of major surgery within the last three months, hypertension, and diabetes mellitus were significantly associated with COVID-19 infection. All COVID-19-negative patients underwent surgery, while only 46.4% of COVID-19-positive patients underwent surgery. The most common surgical procedures were related to the digestive system, breast, and urinary system. Only one patient (0.4%) died within 30 days after surgery among the COVID-19-negative patients, whereas two patients (7.1%) died among the COVID-19-positive patients: one before surgery and one after surgery. This study provides valuable insights into the characteristics, burden of COVID-19 infection, and 30-day mortality of patients undergoing elective surgery in tertiary care centers in Bangladesh during the pandemic.