What is the Impact of the 2020 Coronavirus Lockdown on Maxillofacial Trauma?

Abstract

Purpose: The novel severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2) or COVID-19 pandemic first arrived in Nashville, Tennessee, in early March 2020. Soon after, stay-at-home orders were initiated. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the impact of a 7-week lockdown on maxillofacial trauma volume at TriStar Skyline Medical Center, a level II trauma center in Nashville, Tennessee.

Patients and methods: The investigator designed a retrospective cohort study and enrolled a sample of patients who presented for evaluation of maxillofacial trauma between March 23 and May 11 in the years 2019 and 2020. The primary predictor variable was evaluation of injures during the 2020 lockdown period or the same control period in 2019. The primary outcome variable was injury volume. Additional variables including demographic information, etiology, anatomic location, and initial disposition were evaluated. Descriptive and bivariate statistics were computed, with statistical significance set at P < .05.

Results: The study sample showed a 35.6% reduction in patients seen during the 2020 lockdown (n = 38) compared with 2019 (n = 59, P = .15). The proportion of male to female trauma patients increased during the lockdown period from 6.6:1 (n = 33 male, n = 5 female) in 2020 compared with 2.3:1 (n = 41 male, n = 18 female) in 2019 (P = .049). The number of assaults decreased by 65.2% (P = .22). The percentage of patients seen on an outpatient basis decreased from 27.1% (n = 16) to 5.3% (n = 2, P = .007) during the lockdown period.

Conclusions: The initial 7-week lockdown during the COVID-19 pandemic was associated with a decrease in patients with maxillofacial trauma. The effect of the stay-at-home orders with resultant social distancing, has shown a decrease in maxillofacial trauma due to interpersonal violence.