STEMI patients in the first and second wave of COVID-19 pandemic in Slovenia

Abstract Introduction Countries, severly hit by COVID-19 pandemic in spring 2020, reported reduced admissions and increased mortality of STEMI patients. The first wave of COVID-19 pandemic in Slovenia was mild, but in the second wave (October to December 2020) COVID-19 cases and fatalities significantly increased. To overcome the pandemic, restrictions to full lockdown, rapid redeployment and mobilization of healthcare resources, as well as reduction or delayed hospital admissions for acute non-communicable conditions were were undertaken. Purpose To evaluate STEMI admissions, the delay in treatment, complications and mortality of STEMI patients in the first and second wave of COVID-19 pandemic and comparison of data to 3 months (March-May) in 2019. Methods We retrospectively analysed the data of STEMI patients, admitted in March to May 2019 and in the first (March-May) and in the second wave (October-December) of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020. We compared STEMI admissions, age, gender, comorbidities, time to primary coronary intervention (PPCI), the rate of PPCI, TIMI III flow after PPCI, prior resuscitations, hospital complications such as heart failure, arrhythmias, bleedings, acute kidney injury and mortality between 2019 and both waves of COVID-19 pandemic. Results Between STEMI patients in 2019 and patients in the first and the second wave of COVID-19 pandemic there were nonsignificant differences in STEMI admissions (90 patients vs 96 patients vs 81 patients), in gender, age, comorbidities, the rate of primary percutaneous intervention (PPCI, 94.4% vs 94.8% vs 91.4%), TIMI III flow after PPCI, anterior STEMI, in prior resuscitations (10% vs 10.4% vs 16%). Compared to 2019, admission acute heart failure was nonsignificantly increased in COVID-19 pandemic (30% vs 34.4% vs 39.5%). Within the first 3 hours of STEMI PPCI was performed nonsignificantly less likely in the first wave and significantly less likely in the second wave (35.5%* vs 30.2% vs 19.8%*, *p=0.037) in comparison to 2019. The incidence of acute kidney injury was similar in the first wave, but nonsignificantly increased in the second wave (6.6% vs 5.2% vs 9.8%), compared to 2019 and hospital infection was nonsignificantly increased in both COVID-19 periods (15.6% vs 20.8% vs 27.2%). In hospital heart failure was nonsignificantly increased in the first wave and significantly increased in the second one (23.3%* vs 27.1% vs 42%*, *p=0.015), as well as mitral regurgitation (10%* vs 18.8% vs 2