Strategies for the Practice of Otolaryngology and Head and Neck Surgery during COVID-19 Pandemic

Abstract

The appearance of a new coronavirus disease called COVID-19 at the end of 2019 and its pandemic expansion in the world has changed the usual practice of medicine, and has had great impact in the field of Otorhinolaryngology and Head and Neck Surgery (OHNS). The aim of this document is to review the available evidence and propose strategies and recommendations for the medical-surgical practice of OHNS, which allow establishing the usual activity, adapting the safety and efficacy standards to the current pandemic situation. Therefore, it is required to identify and classify patients according to criteria of infectious-immunological status, and to establish recommendations for protection in consultations, hospitalization and the operating room, which avoid the transmission of the disease to other users and healthcare personnel, in the specific context of the development of our specialty. This document is the result of the collaboration of all the scientific commissions of Spanish OHNS society and therefore might help other OHNS to develop their work during COVID-19 pandemic.