Effect of the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic on paediatric bilateral myringotomy and tube insertion rates in New Brunswick, Canada

ObjectiveTo assess the effect of the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic on paediatric bilateral myringotomy and tube insertion rates in New Brunswick, Canada.MethodsAll paediatric bilateral myringotomy and tube insertion cases from 1 July 2015 through 30 June 2021 were provided by New Brunswick Medic...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of laryngology and otology 2023-12, Vol.137 (12), p.1389-1394
Main Authors: Hathi, K, Chin, C J, Hoyt, B J A
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Coronaviruses
COVID-19
Data collection
Disease transmission
Ear diseases
Extracurricular activities
Health care policy
Hip
Joint replacement surgery
Main
Main Article
Medicare
Pandemics
Patients
Pediatrics
Public health
Respiratory tract infection
Thyroidectomy
Citations: Items that this one cites
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:ObjectiveTo assess the effect of the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic on paediatric bilateral myringotomy and tube insertion rates in New Brunswick, Canada.MethodsAll paediatric bilateral myringotomy and tube insertion cases from 1 July 2015 through 30 June 2021 were provided by New Brunswick Medicare. The numbers of otolaryngologists, cataract surgical procedures, total hip arthroplasties and thyroidectomies were collected to assess the availability of operating theatres and otolaryngologists. Negative binomial logarithmic regressions were used for analyses.ResultsOf the 5175 paediatric bilateral myringotomy and tube insertion cases that were included, the bilateral myringotomy and tube insertion rate significantly decreased by 2.9 times (p < 0.001) during the pandemic. Thyroidectomies, cataract surgical procedures and total hip arthroplasties did not significantly decrease. The number of otolaryngologists increased (20 vs 16–17).ConclusionPaediatric bilateral myringotomy and tube insertion rates significantly decreased during the pandemic. This cannot be accounted for by reduced otolaryngologists or operating theatre availability. The paediatric bilateral myringotomy and tube insertion rate decrease is likely due to public health measures reducing the transmission of upper respiratory tract infections, resulting in fewer indications for paediatric bilateral myringotomy and tube insertion.
ISSN:0022-2151
1748-5460
DOI:10.1017/S002221512300066X