1206 Available online at www.medicinescience.org ORIGINAL ARTICLE Medicine Science 2023;12(4):1206-9 Corresponding Author: Sevda Akdeniz, Samsun University, Samsun Training and Research Hospital, Department of Anesthesiology and Reanimation, Samsun, Türkiye Email: sevda.akdeniz@saglik.gov.tr A comparison of code blue calls in a tertiary pediatric hospital in the pre-pandemic and pandemic periods Sevda Akdeniz, Hatice Selcuk Kusderci, Senay Canikli Adiguzel Samsun University, Samsun Training and Research Hospital, Department of Anesthesiology and Reanimation, Samsun, Türkiye Received 25 August 2023; Accepted 02 September 2023 Available online 19.10.2023 with doi: 10.5455/medscience.2023.08.170 Content of this journal is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NonDerivatives 4.0 International License. CITATION Akdeniz S, Selcuk Kusderci H, Canikli Adiguzel S. A comparison of code blue calls in a tertiary pediatric hospital in the pre-pandemic and pandemic periods. Med Science. 2023;12(4):1206-9. Abstract Tis study compares the code blue calls (CBCs) used in our hospital before and during the COVID-19 pandemic. CBCs made between 31.03.2018 and 31.03.2022 in the Samsun Maternity and Child Health Training and Research Hospital were examined retrospectively. Te study period was subdivided into two sections, one from March 31, 2018, to March 30, 2020 (Group 1, the pre-pandemic period) and the other from March 31, 2020, to March 31, 2022 (Group 2, the pandemic period). Patients' demographic data, the reason for the CBC and where it was issued, the time elapsed before the team arrived on the scene, and the outcomes were then compared between the groups. Seventy-nine CBCs, 34 (43.1%) of which were ‘false,’ were included in the study. Forty-six calls were made in the pre-pandemic period, 26 (56.5%) of which were true calls, while 33 calls were made during the pandemic, of which 19 (57.6%) were true calls. Twenty-seven (60%) of the 45 true CBCs were for boys and 18 (40%) for girls. Te children’s mean age was 73.06±66.85 months, and 57.7% of the CBCs were issued during the pre-pandemic period. No signifcant diference was observed between groups 1 and 2 in terms of code blue team arrival times (114.03±59.14 vs. 138.1±95.96 sec, respectively (P=.305). Te total mortality rate at the end of 30 days was 13.3% (P=.679). No diference was observed in CBC results between the pre-pandemic and pandemic periods in this study. We think that some blue code parameters, such as false calls and blue code team arrival times, can be improved through efective training against potential future pandemics. Keywords: Coronavirus disease 2019, pediatrics, pandemic, code blue Medicine Science International Medical Journal Introduction The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic afected all pediatric age groups. Children generally exhibit milder COVID-19 symptoms and have lower risks of hospitalization and life-threatening complications than adults. Although cardiac arrest associated with COVID-19 is rare in children, cases of severe disease or children developing a post-infectious multisystem infammatory syndrome are not uncommon [1,2]. Children are therefore at risk of critical illness as a result of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). Up to 30% of children hospitalized due to COVID-19 are admitted to intensive care units (ICUs) and as many as 5% to 15% require mechanical ventilation. Although these considerations applied throughout the pandemic, pediatric case numbers and hospitalizations rose dramatically toward the end of 2021 [3]. The numbers of code blue calls (CBCs) for children may also have risen in line with that increase. Code blue is a universal emergency system involving the reaction of a professional team in cases requiring emergency in-hospital intervention. The team is made up of a physician, an anesthesia technician, or a nurse with experience of cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR), and security staf. The system permits the prompt identifcation and management of emergencies requiring urgent medical attention, such as cardiopulmonary arrest. It reduces both mortality and morbidity in pediatric hospitals [4]. The application of the code system began in the USA. In Türkiye, it was initially implemented by the Ministry of Health in 2008 and was made compulsory in 2011 [5].