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Trends in cataract surgery and healthcare system response during the COVID-19 lockdown in Malaysia: Lessons to be learned

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dc.contributor.authorAmanda Wei-Yin Lim
dc.contributor.authorChin Tho Leong
dc.contributor.authorMohamad Aziz Salowi
dc.contributor.authorYvonne Mei Fong Lim
dc.contributor.authorWen Jun Wong
dc.contributor.authorWen Yea Hwong
dc.date.accessioned2024-08-02T08:29:54Z
dc.date.available2024-08-02T08:29:54Z
dc.date.issued2024
dc.description.abstractBackground: Elective surgeries were suspended during the national lockdown in March 2020 to curb the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic in Malaysia. We sought to evaluate the impact of the lockdown on cataract surgeries and suggest lessons for future outbreaks. Study design: We conducted an interrupted time series analysis to examine rates of cataract surgery before and during the lockdown. Methods: We used national cataract surgical data between 2015 and 2021 from the Malaysian Cataract Surgery Registry. Segmented regression with a seasonally adjusted Poisson model was used for the analysis. Stratified analyses were performed to establish whether the effect of the lockdown on cataract surgeries varied by hospital designation, type of cataract service, sex, and age groups. Results: Cataract surgeries began falling in March 2020 at the onset of the lockdown, reached a trough in April 2020, and subsequently increased but never recovered to pre-lockdown levels. Cataract surgical rates in December 2021 were still 43 % below the expected surgical volume, equivalent to 2513 lost cataract surgeries. There was no evidence of a differential effect of the lockdown between COVID-19 designated and non-COVID-19 designated hospitals. The relative decrease in cataract surgical rates appears to have been greatest in outreach services and in people 40 years and older. Conclusions: The lockdown caused an immediate reduction in cataract surgical rates to nearly half of its baseline rate. Despite its gradual recovery, further delays remain to be expected should there be no redistribution or increase in resources to support backlogs and incoming new cases.
dc.identifier.doihttps://doi.org/10.1016/j.puhip.2024.100469
dc.identifier.urihttps://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2666535224000065?via%3Dihub
dc.identifier.urihttps://repository.nih.gov.my/handle/123456789/836
dc.language.isoen
dc.publisherElsevier
dc.relation.ispartofPublic Health in Practice
dc.relation.issn2666-5352
dc.relation.journalPublic Health in Practice
dc.subjectCOVID-19
dc.subjectLockdown
dc.subjectCataract surgery
dc.subjectInterrupted time series
dc.subjectSegmented regression
dc.subjectHealthcare system
dc.titleTrends in cataract surgery and healthcare system response during the COVID-19 lockdown in Malaysia: Lessons to be learned
dc.typejournal-article
dspace.entity.typePublication
oaire.citation.volume7
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