[Reorganization of haemodialysis during COVID-19 emergency: a report from Dialysis Centers of Parma province].

Publisher: Società Italiana di Nefrologia Country of Publication: Italy NLM ID: 9426434 Publication Model: Electronic Cited Medium: Internet ISSN: 1724-5990 (Electronic) Linking ISSN: 03935590 NLM ISO Abbreviation: G Ital Nefrol Subsets: MEDLINE

Publication: <2013- >: Rome : Società Italiana di Nefrologia.
Original Publication: Milano : Wichtig editore

Betacoronavirus*/isolation & purification ; Hospital Restructuring* ; Pandemics*/prevention & control ; Renal Dialysis*; Coronavirus Infections/*epidemiology ; Hemodialysis Units, Hospital/*organization & administration ; Kidney Failure, Chronic/*therapy ; Pneumonia, Viral/*epidemiology; COVID-19 ; COVID-19 Testing ; Clinical Laboratory Techniques ; Comorbidity ; Coronavirus Infections/diagnosis ; Coronavirus Infections/prevention & control ; Early Diagnosis ; Emergencies ; Hemodialysis Units, Hospital/statistics & numerical data ; Hemodialysis, Home/statistics & numerical data ; Hospital Mortality ; Hospitals, University/statistics & numerical data ; Humans ; Infection Control/methods ; Italy/epidemiology ; Kidney Failure, Chronic/epidemiology ; Nasopharynx/virology ; Patient Isolation ; Peritoneal Dialysis ; Personal Protective Equipment ; Pneumonia, Viral/prevention & control ; Procedures and Techniques Utilization ; SARS-CoV-2 ; Triage

The epidemic wave that hit Italy from February 21st, 2020, when the Italian National Institute of Health confirmed the first case of SARS‑CoV‑2 infection, led to a rapid and efficient reorganization of Dialysis Centers' activities, in order to contain large-scale spread of disease in this clinical setting. We herein report the experience of the Hemodialysis Unit of Parma University Hospital (Azienda Ospedaliero-Universitaria, Parma, Italy) and the Dialysis Centers of Parma territory, in the period from March 1st, 2020 to June 15, 2020. Among patients undergoing chronic haemodialysis, 37/283 (13%) had positive swabs for SARS‑CoV‑2, 9/37 (24%) died because of COVID-19. Twenty-three patients required hospitalization, while the remaining were managed at home. The primary measures applied to contain the infection were: the strengthening of personal protective equipment use by doctors and nurses, early identification of infected subjects by performing oro-pharyngeal swabs in every patient and in the healthcare personnel, the institution of a triage protocol when entering Dialysis Room, and finally the institution of two separate sections, managed by different doctors and dialysis nurses, to physically separate affected from unaffected patients and to manage "grey" patients. Our experience highlights the importance and effectiveness of afore-mentioned measures in order to contain the spread of the virus; moreover, we observed a higher lethality rate of COVID-19 in dialysis patients as compared to the general population.
(Copyright by Società Italiana di Nefrologia SIN, Rome, Italy.)

Keywords: COVID-19; Emilia-Romagna; Parma; haemodialysis

Date Created: 20201007 Date Completed: 20201019 Latest Revision: 20201218

20240829

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