EFAS/EAN survey on the influence of the COVID-19 pandemic on European clinical autonomic
education and research.
Fanciulli, Alessandra ✉; Skorić, Magdalena Krbot; Leys, Fabian; Carneiro, Diogo Reis; Campese, Nicole; Calandra-Buonaura, Giovanna; Camaradou, Jennifer; Chiaro, Giacomo; Cortelli, Pietro; Falup-Pecurariu, Cristian; Granata, Roberta; Guaraldi, Pietro; Helbok, Raimund; Hilz, Max J; Iodice, Valeria; Jordan, Jens; Kaal, Evert C A; Kamondi, Anita [Kamondi, Anita (Idegtudományok), author] Department of Neurology (SU
/ FM / C); Országos Mentális, Ideggyógyászati és Idegsebés...; Institute of Neurology
and Neurosurgery (Amerik... (OMIII); Le Traon, Anne Pavy; Rocha, Isabel; Sellner, Johann; Senard, Jean Michel; Terkelsen, Astrid; Wenning, Gregor K; Moro, Elena; Berger, Thomas; Thijs, Roland D; Struhal, Walter; Habek, Mario; Adamec, Ivan [Collaborator]; Collaborators of European Network of Neurological Autonomic Laboratories [Collaborative
Organization]; Aerts, Arnaud [Collaborator]; Canta, Leo L R [Collaborator]; Delamont, Robert Shane [Collaborator]; de Lange, Frederik [Collaborator]; Del Sorbo, Francesca [Collaborator]; Devigili, Grazia [Collaborator]; Di Leo, Rita [Collaborator]; Dinh, Trang [Collaborator]; Fortrat, Jacques-Olivier [Collaborator]; Gierthmühlen, Janne [Collaborator]; Hemels, Martin [Collaborator]; Köhn, Julia [Collaborator]; Krøigård, Thomas [Collaborator]; Lipp, Axel [Collaborator]; Maier, Andrea [Collaborator]; Marinelli, Lucio [Collaborator]; Mazzeo, Anna [Collaborator]; Milenkovic, Ivan [Collaborator]; Motyl, Maciej [Collaborator]; Sora, Maria Grazia Natali [Collaborator]; Navarro-Otano, Judith [Collaborator]; Nilsen, Kristian Bernhard [Collaborator]; Oliveira, Mario [Collaborator]; Omland, Petter Moe [Collaborator]; Pelliccioni, Giuseppe [Collaborator]; Pereon, Yann [Collaborator]; Resch, Roland Josef [Collaborator]; Rocchi, Camilla [Collaborator]; Roche, Frederic [Collaborator]; Rutten, Joost [Collaborator]; Tijero-Merino, Beatriz [Collaborator]; Tutaj, Marcin [Collaborator]; van der Heijden-Montfroy, A M H G [Collaborator]; van Hoeve, Bas J A [Collaborator]; van Orshoven, Narender [Collaborator]; Wang, Ruihao [Collaborator]; Z'Graggen, Werner J [Collaborator]
To understand the influence of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic on
clinical autonomic education and research in Europe.We invited 84 European autonomic
centers to complete an online survey, recorded the pre-pandemic-to-pandemic percentage
of junior participants in the annual congresses of the European Federation of Autonomic
Societies (EFAS) and European Academy of Neurology (EAN) and the pre-pandemic-to-pandemic
number of PubMed publications on neurological disorders.Forty-six centers answered
the survey (55%). Twenty-nine centers were involved in clinical autonomic education
and experienced pandemic-related didactic interruptions for 9 (5; 9) months. Ninety
percent (n = 26/29) of autonomic educational centers reported a negative impact of
the COVID-19 pandemic on education quality, and 93% (n = 27/29) established e-learning
models. Both the 2020 joint EAN-EFAS virtual congress and the 2021 (virtual) and 2022
(hybrid) EFAS and EAN congresses marked higher percentages of junior participants
than in 2019. Forty-one respondents (89%) were autonomic researchers, and 29 of them
reported pandemic-related trial interruptions for 5 (2; 9) months. Since the pandemic
begin, almost half of the respondents had less time for scientific writing. Likewise,
the number of PubMed publications on autonomic topics showed the smallest increase
compared with other neurological fields in 2020-2021 and the highest drop in 2022.
Autonomic research centers that amended their trial protocols for telemedicine (38%,
n = 16/41) maintained higher clinical caseloads during the first pandemic year.The
COVID-19 pandemic had a substantial negative impact on European clinical autonomic
education and research. At the same time, it promoted digitalization, favoring more
equitable access to autonomic education and improved trial design.
