Percutaneous cholecystostomy instead of laparoscopy to treat acute cholecystitis during the COVID-19 pandemic period: single center experience.

Somuncu, Erkan; Kara, Yasin; Kızılkaya, Mehmet Celal; Bozdağ, Emre; Yıldız, Zeynep Betül; Özkan, Cenk; Şener, Aziz; Gökay, Rıdvan; Aydın, Mahmut Ozan; Bozkurt, Mehmet Abdussamet; Kocataş, Ali

BACKGROUND Laparoscopic cholecystectomy (LC) is the accepted standard treatment for acute cholecystitis (AC) in patients eligible for surgery. Percutaneous cholecystostomy (PC) can provide a permanent treatment for high-risk patients for surgery or act as a bridge for later surgical treatment. This study is an evaluation of the use of PC during the current coronavirus 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic at a single hospital. METHODS Fifty patients with AC were admitted as of the start of the COVID-19 pandemic in Turkey through June 2020. Patients with pancreatitis, cholangitis, and/or incomplete data were excluded from the study. Data of the remaining 36 patients included in the study were recorded and a descriptive statistical analysis was performed. The patients were divided into three groups: PC (n=14), only conservative treatment with antibiotherapy (OC) (n=14), and LC (n=8). The findings were compared with a group of 70 similar patients from the pre-pandemic period. RESULTS The mean age of the pandemic period patients was 53 years (range: 26-78 years). The female/male ratio was 1.11. PC was preferred in eight (11%) patients in the same period of the previous year, whereas 14 (39%) patients underwent PC in the pandemic period. Four of the 36 pandemic patients were positive for COVID-19, including one member of the PC group. There was one (7.1%) mortality in the pandemic-period PC group due to cardiac arrest. The length of hospital stay between the groups based on the type of treatment was not statistically significant. CONCLUSION LC is not recommended during the pandemic period; PC can be an effective and safe alternative for the treatment of AC.