TY  - JOUR
PY  - 2021//
TI  - Acute effect of the COVID-19 pandemic on emergency transportation due to acute alcoholic intoxication: a retrospective observational study
JO  - Environmental health and preventive medicine
A1  - Minami, Marina
A1  - Kidokoro, Kazumoto
A1  - Eitoku, Masamitsu
A1  - Kawauchi, Atsufumi
A1  - Miyauchi, Masato
A1  - Suganuma, Narufumi
A1  - Nishiyama, Kingo
SP  - e98
EP  - e98
VL  - 26
IS  - 1
N2  - BACKGROUND: The COVID-19 pandemic has caused changes in people's drinking habits and the emergency management system for various diseases. However, no studies have investigated the pandemic's impact on emergency transportation for acute alcoholic intoxication. This study examines the effect of the pandemic on emergency transportation due to acute alcoholic intoxication in Kochi Prefecture, Japan, a region with high alcohol consumption. <br><br>METHODS: A retrospective observational study was conducted using data of 180,747 patients from the Kochi-Iryo-Net database, Kochi Prefecture's emergency medical and wide-area disaster information system. Chi-squared tests and multiple logistic regression analyses were performed. The association between emergency transportation and alcoholic intoxication was examined. The differences between the number of transportations during the voluntary isolation period in Japan (March and April 2020) and the same period for 2016-2019 were measured. <br><br>RESULTS: In 2020, emergency transportations due to acute alcoholic intoxication declined by 0.2%, compared with previous years. Emergency transportation due to acute alcoholic intoxication decreased significantly between March and April 2020, compared with the same period in 2016-2019, even after adjusting for confounding factors (adjusted odds ratio 0.67; 95% confidence interval 0.47-0.96). <br><br>CONCLUSIONS: This study showed that lifestyle changes due to the COVID-19 pandemic affected the number of emergency transportations; in particular, those due to acute alcoholic intoxication decreased significantly.<p />  <p>Language: en</p>
LA  - en
SN  - 1342-078X
UR  - http://dx.doi.org/10.1186/s12199-021-01020-5
ID  - ref1
ER  -