Public and private supply of beds and access to health care in the Covid-19 pandemic in Brazil

The Covid-19 pandemic, a global health crisis, has put health systems in several countries in check. In Brazil, patient care has brought about disparities in the offer and access to public and private services and initiatives to preserve healthcare segmentation. The work systematizes information about: beds for hospitalization by Covid-19; patients´ complaints claiming access; and actions to expand the supply of assistance resources involving government proposals and the private sector (health insurance companies and hospitals). There was an expansion of hospital beds, but the uneven distribution in the regions of the country has not changed, nor does it appear to be changes in the pattern of coverage control by health insurance companies. A significant portion of the analyzed law suits refers to the denial of access to private insurance clients due to contractual grace period, while Unified Health System (SUS) patients claimed a place in the Intensive Care Units (ICU). Lives were lost due to omissions for effective and qualified protection. Public Intensive Care Units had maximum occupancy, while the private sector accounted for empty beds. The analysis shows barriers to access to beds and resistance to attempts to unify public and private efforts to mitigate lethality by the new coronavirus.A pandemia de Covid-19, uma crise sanitária global, pôs em xeque sistemas de saúde de diversos países. No Brasil, o atendimento aos pacientes trouxe à tona disparidades na oferta e no acesso a serviços públicos e privados, bem como iniciativas para preservar a segmentação assistencial. O trabalho sistematiza informações sobre: leitos para internação por Covid-19; pleitos de pacientes reivindicando acesso; e ações para ampliar a oferta de recursos assistenciais envolvendo proposições governamentais e setor privado (empresas de planos e hospitais). Houve expansão de leitos hospitalares, mas a distribuição desigual nas regiões do País não foi alterada; tampouco parece ter havido mudanças no padrão de controle de coberturas por parte das empresas de planos de saúde. Parcela significativa das ações judiciais analisadas refere-se à negação de acesso de clientes de planos privados por carência contratual, enquanto pacientes do Sistema Único de Saúde (SUS) pleitearam vaga em Unidade de Terapia Intensiva (UTI). Vidas foram perdidas em decorrência de omissões para proteção efetiva e qualificada. Unidades públicas de terapia intensiva tiveram ocupação máxima, enquanto o setor privado contabilizou leitos ociosos. A análise evidencia barreiras de acesso a leitos e resistência às tentativas de unificação de esforços públicos e privados para mitigar a letalidade pelo novo coronavírus

Impact of COVID-19 on cardiovascular testing in the United States versus the rest of the world

Objectives: This study sought to quantify and compare the decline in volumes of cardiovascular procedures between the United States and non-US institutions during the early phase of the coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. Background: The COVID-19 pandemic has disrupted the care of many non-COVID-19 illnesses. Reductions in diagnostic cardiovascular testing around the world have led to concerns over the implications of reduced testing for cardiovascular disease (CVD) morbidity and mortality. Methods: Data were submitted to the INCAPS-COVID (International Atomic Energy Agency Non-Invasive Cardiology Protocols Study of COVID-19), a multinational registry comprising 909 institutions in 108 countries (including 155 facilities in 40 U.S. states), assessing the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on volumes of diagnostic cardiovascular procedures. Data were obtained for April 2020 and compared with volumes of baseline procedures from March 2019. We compared laboratory characteristics, practices, and procedure volumes between U.S. and non-U.S. facilities and between U.S. geographic regions and identified factors associated with volume reduction in the United States. Results: Reductions in the volumes of procedures in the United States were similar to those in non-U.S. facilities (68% vs. 63%, respectively; p = 0.237), although U.S. facilities reported greater reductions in invasive coronary angiography (69% vs. 53%, respectively; p < 0.001). Significantly more U.S. facilities reported increased use of telehealth and patient screening measures than non-U.S. facilities, such as temperature checks, symptom screenings, and COVID-19 testing. Reductions in volumes of procedures differed between U.S. regions, with larger declines observed in the Northeast (76%) and Midwest (74%) than in the South (62%) and West (44%). Prevalence of COVID-19, staff redeployments, outpatient centers, and urban centers were associated with greater reductions in volume in U.S. facilities in a multivariable analysis. Conclusions: We observed marked reductions in U.S. cardiovascular testing in the early phase of the pandemic and significant variability between U.S. regions. The association between reductions of volumes and COVID-19 prevalence in the United States highlighted the need for proactive efforts to maintain access to cardiovascular testing in areas most affected by outbreaks of COVID-19 infection

Tratamento cirúrgico dos aneurismas toracoabdominais da aorta Surgical treatment of thoracoabdominal aortic aneurysms

Foram operados, em nosso Serviço, 161 aneurismas da aorta, sendo 99 por dissecção e 62 por outras causas. Em cinco pacientes, os aneurismas eram de localização toracoabdominal, sendo três por degeneração aterosclerótica e dois por dissecção; três pacientes eram do sexo feminino e a idade variou de 31 a 71 anos. Dois pacientes submeteram-se a aneurismectomia previamente (um da aorta ascendente e outro da porção proximal da aorta torácica). Revascularização miocárdica foi feita em um paciente, 40 dias antes da aneurismectomia. A indicação em todos os pacientes foi dor, causada por compressão do aneurisma, sendo que, em dois, havia insuficiência respiratória associada. Todos os pacientes foram operados através de incisão toracoabdominal e abertura do diafragma. A aorta foi substituída por tubo de Dacron, desde sua porção proximal até sua bifurcação, e as artérias viscerais foram implantadas no tubo. Quatro pacientes foram operados com pinçamento da aorta; um paciente necessitou emprego de circulação extracorpórea e parada circulatória, por impossibilidade de pinçamento da aorta junto à artéria subclávia. Todos os pacientes sobreviveram ao ato cirúrgico, ocorrendo dois óbitos no pós-operatório, um subitamente no 12º dia e outro por coma neurológico secundário a parada cardíaca causada por hipoxia.Five patients have been operated on of thoracoabdominal aortic aneurysms. The mean age was 53 years (range 31-71) and three were women. All the patients were symptomatic, three of them had arteriosclerotic aneurysms, and the other two had dissecting aneurysms. Three patients had been operated on previously. The exposure of aneurysm was made through a thoracoabdominal incision, in four patients clamps were placed above and below the aneurysm and it was incised longitudinally. Bypass between left atrium and left femoral artery with hypothermia and circulatory arrest was used in the other patients, since the proximal thoracic aortic clamping was impossible. A woven Dacron graft of adequate size was used to substitute the aorta, intercostals and visceral arteries were reimplanted. Paraplegia occurred in one patient. There was no intraoperative death. Two patients died in the immediate postoperative period, one of them on the 3rd day, by neurologic coma caused by cardiac arrest during the operation, and the other patient on the 12th postoperative day, suddenlly. Three patients were followed up. Two patients are doing well, 13 and 72 months after operation, and the other one has the limitation of the paraplegia

Aneurismas da aorta Aortic aneurysms

Entre janeiro de 1979 e janeiro de 1992, foram realizadas 212 operações para correção de aneurismas e de dissecções da aorta. Neste trabalho serão analisados 104 procedimentos cirúrgicos (em 97 pacientes) para correção de aneurismas. A idade dos pacientes variou de 14 a 79 anos (média 59,5 anos) e o sexo predominante foi o masculino, com 75 pacientes. Os aneurismas localizavam-se na aorta ascendente em 46 pacientes, na croça em 8, na aorta descendente em 8, na aorta toráco-abdominal em 8, na aorta abdominal em 21, na aorta descendente e abdominal em 2, na aorta ascendente e tóraco-abdominal em 2, na aorta ascendente e descendente em 1, na aorta ascendente, croça e descendente em 1. Doenças cardiovasculares associadas estavam presentes em 39 pacientes, sendo valvopatia aórtica em 18 (excluídos os pacientes com ectasiaânulo-aórtíca), insuficiência coronária em 17, coarctação da aorta em 2, persistência do canal arterial em 1 e valvopatia mitral e aórtica em 1. A mortalidade imediata (hospitalar e/ou 30 dias) foi de 14,4%, sendo de 27,7% (5/18) para pacientes com mais de 70 anos e de 11,3% (9/79) para pacientes com idade inferior a 70 anos. Os aneurismas localizados na aorta ascendente e croça foram operados como o auxílio de circulação extracorpórea. Parada circulatória e hipotermia profunda foram utilizadas em todos os pacientes com aneurisma da croça. O estudo tomográfico e angiográfico deve ser de toda a aorta, pela possibilidade de aneurismas de localizações múltiplas.<br>Among 212 patients undergoing operation for aortic aneurysm and aortic dissection between January 1979 and January 1992, 97 were operated on for aneurysms. The aneurysms were localized in: ascending aorta in 46 patients, transverse aortic arch in 8, descending aorta in 8, thoracoabdominal aorta in 8, abdominal (infrarenal) aorta in 21, descending and abdominal aorta in 2, ascending and thoracoabdominal aorta in 2, ascending and descending in 1, ascending, transverse arch and descending aorta in 1. Hospital mortality was 14,4% being 27,7% (5/18) among patients over 70 years old an 11,3% (9/79) among patients under 70 years of age. Our experience suggests that: secondary and tertiary operations, advanced age, associated diseases, respiratory infection and acute renal failure increase early mortality

Revascularização miocárdica em pacientes com idade igual ou superior a 70 anos Myocardial revascularization in patients 70 years of age and older

A cirurgia de revascularização miocárdica em pacientes acima de 70 anos vem tornandose cada vez mais freqüente. Em 1979, ela representou 3,3% dos pacientes operados, alcançando 14,8% em 1989. Entre janeiro de 1979 e outubro de 1989, dos 7003 pacientes revascularizados, 492 pacientes estavam na oitava ou nona década de vida. A indicação cirúrgica tem sido empregada, preferencialmente, para pacientes com lesões de alto risco e muito sintomáticos, estando 84% em grupos III e IV de angina. Quanto ao número de artérias com lesões críticas, 62,3% tinham lesões triarteriais, 31,4% lesões biarteriais e 6,2% lesões uniarteriais; 15% dos pacientes tinham lesão do tronco da coronária esquerda. Operações associadas à revascularização miocárdica foram realizadas em 54 pacientes, sendo 30 aneurismectomias do ventrículo esquerdo, 21 cirurgias valvares e três endarterectomias de carótida. Vinte e oito pacientes estavam na fase aguda do infarto do miocárdio e 27 pacientes estavam sendo operados pela segunda vez. A idade dos pacientes estava compreendida entre 70 e 74 anos em 354 (71,9%) pacientes, entre 75 e 79 em 121 (24,5%) pacientes e entre 80 e 87 anos em 17 (3,4%). A mortalidade imediata (hospitalar ou 30 dias) foi de 8,5% (42/492) sendo de 2,5% (162/6511) em pacientes abaixo de 70 anos (p < 0,0001), operados no mesmo período. De 410 pacientes idosos submetidos apenas à revascularização miocárdica (angina estável e instável), faleceram 21 (5,1%). De 28 pacientes operados na fase aguda do infarto do miocárdio, 13 (46,4%) faleceram, e, de 54 pacientes com operações associadas, oito (14,8%) faleceram (p < 0,001). Dos 27 pacientes reoperados, houve 5 (18,5%) óbitos. O seguimento tardio pós-operatório variou de dois a 127 meses. Apenas 17 (3,9%) pacientes não puderam ser contactados recentemente. Nesse período, ocorreram 32 óbitos, sendo 15 (46,8%) de causa cardíaca.<br>From January 1979 to October 1989, 7003 patients underwent myocardial revascularization and associated operations; there were 6511 patients under the age of 70, with early mortality of 2.5% (162/6511), in contrast to 492 patients 70 years of age or older with early mortality of 8,5% (42/492). Among these 492 patients, 410 underwent isolated myocardial revascularization with early mortality of 5.1% (21/410); 54 patients underwent associated operatins (left ventricle aneurysmectomy in 30 patients, valvular operation in 21 patients and carotid endarterectomy in 3 patients) with early mortality of 14.8% (8/54) and 28 patients were operated on early after acute myocardial infarction and the early mortality was 46.4% (13/28). The differences among these death-rates were significant. A 96.1% follow-up was obtained up to 127 months. The elderly patients are at severe risk mainly when they undergo associated operations besides myocardial revascularization, and there is a more significant risk when they are operated on early after myocardial infarction

Carotid artery inflow in operations to correct aortic diseases (ascending, arch and descending)

OBJECTIVE: Femoral artery cannulation has been used as the preferred option in operations to correct ascending aorta and aortic arch aneurysms and dissections. The axillary artery is an alternative site for cannulation. We have used arterial inflow via the common carotid artery in nine patients. METHOD: Nine patients were operated on with ages ranging from 46 to 80 years (mean 62.1 ± 12.54), six were male. Four patients had true aneurysms, three had aortic dissections and two a combination of dissections and true aneurysms. Five patients had undergone previous cardiovascular operations. Deep hypothermia with circulation arrest was used in two patients and in seven, antegrade cerebral perfusion was used. RESULTS: All nine patients awoke from the operation without cerebral damage. Two patients died, one on the 7th postoperative day due to respiratory failure and the other one on the third postoperative day due to a rupture of a thoracoabdominal aortic aneurysm. CONCLUSION: The carotid artery can be a safe alternative of arterial inflow in operations to correct ascending aorta and aortic arch diseases. This strategy allows antegrade cerebral perfusion during the operation even during arch resection and reconstruction