Back to Search
Start Over
Impact of <scp>COVID‐19</scp> on the quality of life of patients with neuromuscular disorders in the <scp>L</scp> ombardy area, <scp>I</scp> taly
- Source :
- Muscle & Nerve
- Publication Year :
- 2021
- Publisher :
- Wiley, 2021.
-
Abstract
- Introduction:/Aims Patients with neuromuscular disorders (NMDs), including many elderly, immunosuppressed, and disabled individuals, may have been particularly affected during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID‐19) pandemic in Lombardy, a COVID‐19 high‐incidence area between February and May 2020. We aimed to evaluate the effects of the COVID‐19 pandemic on the quality of life (QoL) and perceived disease burden of this group of patients. Methods We conducted a cross‐sectional phone‐based survey study between June 1 and June 14, 2020, on a sample of 240 NMD patients followed at our clinic in Milan, Italy. We asked about perceived NMD burden and QoL before and during the COVID‐19 pandemic. We collected responses on access to outpatient care and ancillary services. We investigated the presence of symptoms suggestive of COVID‐19 infection and confirmed cases. Results We collected 205 responses: 53 patients (25.9%) reported a subjective worsening of the underlying NMD. QoL measures showed a significant worsening between pre and pandemic time frames (odds ratio, 2.14 95%; confidence interval, 1.82–2.51). Outpatient visits were postponed in more than half of cases (57.1%), with 104 patients (50.7%) experiencing a cancellation of scheduled diagnostic tests. 79 patients (38.5%) reported at least one symptom attributable to COVID‐19 infection. Among the 10 patients tested with nasopharyngeal swabs, 6 tested positive and 3 died from respiratory failure, including 2 patients on corticosteroid/ immunosuppressive therapy. Discussion The COVID‐19 pandemic affected QoL and limited access to outpatient care and ancillary services of NMD patients in Lombardy between February and May 2020.
- Subjects :
- Adult
Male
Pediatrics
medicine.medical_specialty
Physiology
medicine.medical_treatment
neuromuscular disorders
Cellular and Molecular Neuroscience
Ambulatory care
Quality of life
COVID‐19
Surveys and Questionnaires
Physiology (medical)
Pandemic
medicine
Humans
quality‐of‐life
Clinical Research Articles
Disease burden
Aged
access to care
Aged, 80 and over
Clinical Research Article
immunosuppression
business.industry
COVID-19
Immunosuppression
Neuromuscular Diseases
Odds ratio
Middle Aged
Confidence interval
Cross-Sectional Studies
Italy
Respiratory failure
Quality of Life
Female
Neurology (clinical)
business
Subjects
Details
- ISSN :
- 10974598 and 0148639X
- Volume :
- 64
- Database :
- OpenAIRE
- Journal :
- Muscle & Nerve
- Accession number :
- edsair.doi.dedup.....2e6f168dd716033f1374214ab5e5223f