Table 1.
Characteristics of the patients and variations between the two periods of the study
| Factor | 2019* | 2020* | Absolute variation§ | P§ |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total | 3810 | 2453 | − 35.6% | |
| Age | 59.1 ± 21.1 | 59.9 ± 20.3 | + 1.4% | 0.11676 |
| Gender (F/M) | 1875/1935 | 1211/1242 | − 35.4%/− 35.8% | 0.90435 |
| Presentation | ||||
| Abdominal pain | 2709 (71.1%) | 1680 (68.5%) | − 38.0% | 0.00552 |
| Bowel obstruction | 183 (4.8%) | 148 (6.0%) | − 19.1% | |
| GI bleeding | 154 (4.0%) | 142 (5.8%) | − 7.8% | |
| Anorexia/Weight loss | 7 (0.2%) | 3 (0.1%) | − 57.1% | |
| Jaundice | 113 (3.0%) | 67 (2.7%) | − 40.7% | |
| Diarrhoea/Vomit | 92 (2.4%) | 63 (2.6%) | − 31.5% | |
| Dysphagia | 9 (0.2%) | 10 (0.4%) | + 11.1 | |
| Non-trauma haemoperitoneum | 4 (0.1%) | 2 (0.1%) | − 50.0% | |
| Anal pain | 114 (3.0%) | 49 (2.0%) | − 57.0% | |
| Fever | 24 (0.6%) | 19 (0.8%) | − 20.8% | |
| Anaemia | 15 (0.4%) | 4 (0.2%) | − 73.3% | |
| Hernia | 169 (4.4%) | 94 (3.8%) | − 44.4% | |
| Skin issue | 60 (1.6%) | 51 (2.1%) | − 15.0% | |
| Wound complications | 10 (0.3%) | 2 (0.1%) | − 80% | |
| Postop complications | 43 (1.1%) | 34 (1.4%) | − 20.9% | |
| Breast pain | 5 (0.5%) | 7 (0.3%) | + 40.0% | |
| Chest pain | 40 (1.0%) | 26 (1.1%) | − 35% | |
| Ischaemic limb | 12 (0.3%) | 12 (0.5%) | 0% | |
| Non traumatic shock | 17 (0.4%) | 17 (0.7%) | 0% | |
| Abnormal radiology | 6 (0.2%) | 2 (0.1%) | − 66.7% | |
| Other | 24 (0.6%) | 21 (0.9%) | − 12.5% | |
| Missing | 0 | 0 | ||
| Smoking | ||||
| No | 2616 (72.7%) | 1428 (61.5%) | − 45.4% | < 0.0001 |
| Yes | 833 (23.2%) | 599 (25.8%) | − 28.1% | |
| Ex | 147 (4.1%) | 296 (12.7%) | + 101.4% | |
| Missing | 214 | 130 | ||
| ASA | ||||
| 1 | 1007 (29.0%) | 477 (20.6%) | − 52.6% | < 0.0001 |
| 2 | 1167 (33.6%) | 834 (36.0%) | − 28.5% | |
| 3 | 1004 (28.9%) | 749 (32.4%) | − 25.4% | |
| 4 | 277 (8.0%) | 238 (10.3%) | − 14.1% | |
| 5 | 16 (0.5%) | 16 (0.7%) | 0% | |
| Missing | 339 | 139 | ||
| Frailty score | ||||
| 1-2 | 2060 (54.1%) | 1165 (47.5%) | − 43.4% | < 0.0001 |
| >2 | 1750 (45.9%) | 1287 (52.5%) | − 26.5% | |
| Missing | 0 | 1 | ||
*: values are reported as: total number (relative percentage in the column)
§: values represent the absolute variation of cases between March-April 2019 and March-April 2020
§: in bold p < 0.05