COVID-19 disruption will lead to as many as 28 million surgeries cancelled worldwide

COVID-19 patients who undergo surgery are at increased risk of postoperative death – global study

Many patients currently waiting for operations across the globe have faced the prospect of having their procedures delayed or even cancelled in the light off the COVID-19 pandemic.

New research by the COVIDSurg collaborative has projected that, over a 12-week period of peak disruption to hospital services due to COVID-19, 28.4 million elective surgeries worldwide were cancelled or postponed in 2020.

Data derived from surgeons across 359 hospitals and 71 countries resulted in the projections. The modelling study also suggested that each additional week of disruption to hospital services will lead to a further 2.4 million cancellations.

The full paper can be viewed here.