Shady Elmaraghi, MD; Venkat K. Rao, MD, MBA; Catharine B. Garland, MD; Benjamin C. Marcus, MD; Delora L. Mount, MD
WMJ. 2020;119(3):202-204.
ABSTRACT
Background: The COVID-19 pandemic has forced many practices to completely change the interface between health care providers and patients. Patients presenting with facial trauma present a special risk for COVID-19 transmission, as contact with respiratory and ocular secretions is common, and so special precautions must be taken in managing them.
Methods: We created guidelines and a triage/management algorithm for patients presenting with facial trauma to decrease the risk of COVID-19 transmission.
Conclusions: In this paper, we present a set of guidelines and a triage algorithm we have successfully implemented to mitigate the spread of COVID-19 while managing facial trauma. We believe that these guidelines can help other providers restructure their practices during this pandemic.