Introduction:

The pandemic declared by WHO for the SARS-CoV-2 virus prepared the Argentine health system for the care of COVID-19 cases, but in this scenario the impact on prevalent diseases, such as cardiovascular diseases, is unknown.

Methods:

A cross-sectional survey was conducted in the centers participating in the ARGEN-IAM-ST registry, to investigate the institutional organization, outpatient care, hospitalization in critical care areas and the situation of health care workers.

Results:

A total of 80 centers were surveyed; 55% were public institutions and 97% had critical care areas. Ninety-one percent of the institutions created a crisis committee due to the pandemic and 65% took measures for outpatient care due to social distancing.

In 89% of the centers hospitalizations due to cardiovascular diseases declined by 57% (SD ± 18) and in 24% of the centers health care workers became infected with SARS-CoV-2.

Conclusion:

A high percentage of centers participating in the ARGEN-IAM-ST continuous registry created crisis committees to reorganize the delivery of health care services; almost two thirds of them took measures for outpatient follow-up and there was a significant decline in bed occupancy for patients with cardiovascular diseases.

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