@article{Hirschfeld_C-2023_163904,
title = {Cardiovascular Testing in the United States during the COVID-19 Pandemic: Volume Recovery and Worldwide Comparison},
author = {Hirschfeld, C. and Dorbala, S. and Shaw, L. and Villines, T. and Choi, A. and Better, N. and Cerci, R. and Karthikeyan, G. and Vitola, J. and Williams, M. and Al-Mallah, M. and Berman, D. and Bernheim, A. and Biederman, R. and Bravo, P. and Budoff, M. and Bullock-Palmer, R. and Chen, M. and Dilorenzo, M. and Doukky, R. and Ferencik, M. and Geske, J. and Hage, F. and Hendel, R. and Koweek, L. and Murthy, V. and Narula, J. and Rodriguez lozano, P. and Shah, N. and Shah, A. and Soman, P. and Thompson, R. and Wolinsky, D. and Cohen, Y. and Malkovskiy, E. and Randazzo, M. and Lopez-Mattei, J. and Parwani, P. and Shetty, M. and Pascual, T. and Pynda, Y. and Dondi, M. and Paez, D. and Einstein, A. and Einstein, A. and Paez, D. and Dondi, M. and Better, N. and Cerci, R. and Dorbala, S. and Karthikeyan, G. and Pascual, T. and Shaw, L. and Villines, T. and Vitola, J. and Williams, M. and Pynda, Y. and Hinterleitner, G. and Lu, Y. and Morozova, O. and Xu, Z. and Hirschfeld, C. and Cohen, Y. and Malkovskiy, E. and Randazzo, M. and Choi, A. and Lopez-Mattei, J. and Parwani, P.},
month = {sep},
year = {2023},
abstract = {Purpose To characterize the recovery of diagnostic cardiovascular procedure volumes in U.S. and non-U.S. facilities in the year following the initial COVID-19 outbreak. Materials and Methods The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) coordinated a worldwide study called the IAEA Noninvasive Cardiology Protocols Study of COVID-19 2 (INCAPS COVID 2), collecting data from 669 facilities in 107 countries, including 93 facilities in 34 U.S. states, to determine the impact of the pandemic on diagnostic cardiovascular procedure volumes. Participants reported volumes for each diagnostic imaging modality used at their facility for March 2019 (baseline), April 2020, and April 2021. This secondary analysis of INCAPS COVID 2 evaluated differences in changes in procedure volume between U.S. and non-U.S. facilities and among U.S. regions. Factors associated with return to prepandemic volumes in the United States were also analyzed in a multivariable regression analysis. Results Reduction in procedure volumes in April 2020 compared with baseline was similar for U.S. and non-U.S. facilities (−66% vs −71%,P = .27). U.S. facilities reported greater return to baseline in April 2021 than did all non-U.S. facilities (4% vs −6%, P = .008), but there was no evidence of a difference when comparing U.S. facilities with non-U.S. high-income country (NUHIC) facilities (4% vs 0%, P = .18). U.S. regional differences in return to baseline were observed between the Midwest (11%), Northeast (9%), South (1%), and West (−7%, P = .03), but no studied factors were significant predictors of 2021 change from prepandemic baseline. Conclusion The reductions in cardiac testing during the early pandemic have recovered within a year to prepandemic baselines in the United States and NUHICs, while procedure volumes remain depressed in lower-income countries. Keywords: SPECT, Cardiac, Epidemiology, Angiography, CT Angiography, CT, Echocardiography, SPECT/CT, MR Imaging, Radionuclide Studies, COVID-19, Cardiovascular Imaging, Diagnostic Cardiovascular Procedure, Cardiovascular Disease, Cardiac Testing Summary Declines in cardiovascular procedure volumes observed early in the COVID-19 pandemic greatly recovered in 2021 in the United States and other high-income countries, but not in facilities in lower-income countries. Key Points ■ U.S. facilities reported a 4% increase in cardiovascular testing volumes in April 2021 compared with prepandemic baseline volumes, while non-U.S. facilities reported a 6% decline in procedure volumes (P = .008), attributable to markedly lower recovery in lower-middle- (−41%) and low- (−50%) income countries. ■ Significant variations were observed among U.S. regions, with greater return of procedure volumes observed in the Midwest (11%) and Northeast (9%) compared with the South (1%) and West (−7%, P = .03). ■ No factors were independently associated with procedure volume recovery in U.S. facilities in a multivariable model.},
volume = {5},
issue = {5},
journal = {Radiology: Cardiothoracic Imaging},
publisher = {Radiological Society of North America},
url = {https://doi.org/10.1148/ryct.220288},
}
