As stated in °µÍø½ûÇø national guidance, ‘Elective surgery in children should be deferred for 14 days following the onset of symptoms or diagnosis with mild or asymptomatic COVID-19 infection’.
The Association of Anaesthetists (AoA) have recently published a recommending that patients should avoid elective surgery within seven weeks of infection. This consensus has been developed for adult patients and services should continue to use the °µÍø½ûÇø guidance for children and young people.
The consensus published by the AoA does not impact on the recommendations within the °µÍø½ûÇø guidance and we therefore continue to advise that for children, elective surgery can be performed 14 days following the onset of symptoms or diagnosis with mild COVID-19 infection.
Thank you for your support as we continue to work together to tackle long waits for care and address backlogs built up during the COVID-19 pandemic. Planning services using °µÍø½ûÇø guidance for children and young people will support this effort.
A letter has been prepared to enable you to share this recommendation across your networks. This is available for download below.