Reduction in the Number of Patients with Suspected and Confirmed Acute Coronary Syndrome during the early months of the Covid-19 Pandemic: Analysis of a Brazilian Network

Introduction

The first reports of infections by the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) occurred in December of 2019 in Wuhan, China.^, This disease (named as coronavirus disease-2019, Covid-19) rapidly spread globally and, on March 11, 2020, the World Health Organization (WHO) declared the state of pandemic.^, Lockdown was a common recommendation for countries affected by the outbreak.

Despite all the attention put on Covid-19 by the health authorities, other diseases could also be impacted by this new circumstance. Rates of acute cardiovascular diseases changed in countries such as Italy and United States, with a reduction in hospital admissions.^– Previous national data regarding acute coronary syndrome (ACS) is already well and largely described, but these studies did not include the Covid-19 period.^, Thus, despite the fact that Brazil was the second most affected country when it comes to number of Covid-19 cases,⁹ the impact in hospital admissions due to suspected or confirmed ACS is still not well defined in both private and public Brazilian healthcare systems.

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