Reduced number of acute myocardial infarction cases at the time of lockdown during the COVID-19 pandemic in northern Iraq‑Erbil : in search for exploring the possible explanation behind it

Abstract EN

Background: Coronavirus disease‑2019 (COVID‑19) pandemic has led to a radical transformation of economic, social, and health‑care networks.

COVID‑19 pandemic has reported a substantial drop in the number of patients presenting to cardiology Emergency Departments with acute coronary syndromes/acute myocardial infarction (ACS/AMI) and a drop in number of cardiac procedures.

Objective: The objective was to describe how lockdown and COVID‑19 pandemic has affected the evolution of AMI and hospital admissions due to ACS.

We aimed to assess the impacts of COVID‑19 on cardiology services and procedures performed on a daily basis before and during the pandemic.

Materials and Methods: This single‑centered retrospective study included all the consecutive patients with ACS/AMI including ST‑segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) and non‑STEMI admitted to ER of Surgical Specialty Hospital‑Cardiac Center/Erbil‑Iraq, from the start of the lockdown (March 15, to April 15, 2020).

The same analysis was conducted among patients presenting with ACS/AMI at the same identical time period before Lockdown (March 15, to April 15, 2019).

Results: A total number of 40 patients admitted at SSH/Cardiac Center‑Erbil with ACS/AMI during the study period, and showed a 37.5% drop in the number of patients with Myocardial Infarction comparing with the corresponding time window before the COVID‑19 pandemic.

Conclusion: These preliminary results strongly demonstrate a decrease in the number of admissions for ACS/AMI during the lockdown period (March 15, to April 15, 2020) due to multiple reasons