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7276311 
Journal Article 
Review 
Battle-Tested Guidelines and Operational Protocols for Neurosurgical Practice in Times of a Pandemic: Lessons Learned from COVID-19 
Al Saiegh, F; Mouchtouris, N; Khanna, O; Baldassari, M; Theofanis, T; Ghosh, R; Tjoumakaris, S; Gooch, MR; Herial, N; Zarzour, H; Romo, V; Mahla, M; Rosenwasser, R; Jabbour, P 
2020 
1 
World Neurosurgery
ISSN: 1878-8750
EISSN: 1878-8769 
ELSEVIER SCIENCE INC 
NEW YORK 
146 
20-25 
English 
33229309 
WOS:000619804900155 
The COVID-19 outbreak has led to fundamental disruptions of health care and its delivery with sweeping implications for patients and physicians of all specialties, including neurosurgery. In an effort to conserve hospital resources, neurosurgical procedures were classified into tiers to determine which procedures have to be performed in a timely fashion and which ones can be temporarily suspended to aid in the hospital's reallocation of resources when equipment is scarce. These guidelines were created quickly based on little existing evidence, and thus were initially variable and required refinement. As the early wave can now be assessed in retrospect, the authors describe the lessons learned and the protocols established based on published global evidence to continue to practice neurosurgery sensibly and minimize disruptions. These operational protocols can be applied in a surge of COVID-19 or another airborne pandemic.