A snapshot of acutely admitted Parkinson’s Disease patient data during the COVID-19 pandemic of 2020 at the Peterborough City Hospital


By Dr. Frederick Magezi Consultant Geriatrician and Lisa Ash Information Specialist at Peterborough City Hospital

Abstract:

The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a relatively new condition caused by the Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). It has its origin in the Wuhan province in china from around December 2019 and has now spread to pandemic levels.

The effect on patients with Parkinson’s disease like many others is poorly understood and there is no clear guidance either nationally or at global (World Health Organisation) level. Most of the advice is generic and focuses on reducing social contact.

The study was carried out at Peterborough City Hospital (PCH) which is part of the North West Anglia NHS Foundation Trust (NWAFT).

Aims/Objectives:

  • To explore Parkinson’s patient characteristics during acute admissions at the PCH during the COVID-19 pandemic of 2020.

  • To explore how COVID-19 affected Parkinson’s patients during their acute admission.

Methods:

465 patient episodes with a diagnostic code of Parkinson’s, admitted to Peterborough City Hospital between 1st January 2020 and 30th September 2020.

Inclusion criteria:

  1. Only patients admitted/who attended the PCH and not any other NWAFT site.

  2. Only patients with definite diagnosis of Parkinson’s.

Results:

  1. 78% (363) of patients admitted were aged between 71 and 90 years of age

  2. 17% (78) of patients had 4 or more hospital admissions in 2020 compared to 5% (15) in 2019

  3. 41% (192) of patients had a LOS of 2 – 10 Days this is a slight decrease from (43%) in 2019

  4. 6 out of 10 (60%) male patients who contracted Covid 19 died in hospital with an average age of 83.

  5. Out of 465 Admissions in 2020, including patients who contracted Covid 19, 8% died in Hospital

Conclusions:

  1. Despite the “Lockdown” during the second quarter of 2020, Parkinson’s patients continued to seek acute hospital care.

  2. Same day care/day surgery cases continued to be seen.

  3. Inadequate national measures regarding testing for COVID-19 led to some patients being discharged without a known COVID-19 status.

  4. A patient with Parkinson’s was more likely to die from COVID-19 if they were male, either from home or a Care/Nursing home.

References:

1. Coronavirus disease (COVID-19): World Health Organization
2. Coronavirus (COVID-19): guidance and support - GOV.UK
3. Coronavirus (COVID-19): NICE

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