• Angelo Porreca, Michele Colicchia, Daniele D'Agostino, Michele Amenta, Alfio Corsaro, Stefano Zaramella, Luisa Zegna, Fabrizio Gallo, Maurizio Schenone, Giorgio Bozzini, Alberto Calori, Antonio L Pastore, Yazan Al Salhi, Carmine Sciorio, Lorenzo Spirito, Virginia Varca, Carlo Marenghi, Francesco Greco, Vincenzo M Altieri, Paolo Verze, Ciro Barba, Alessandro Antonelli, Maria A Cerruto, Roberto Falabella, Silvana Di Bello, Costantino Leonardo, Antonio Tufano, Alessandro Volpe, Paolo Umari, Paolo Parma, Mattia Nidini, Giovannalberto Pini, Marco Borghesi, Carlo Terrone, Giovanni E Cacciamani, Maria C Sighinolfi, Gian Maria Busetto, Alexandra M Wennberg, Marinella Finocchiaro, Mario Falsaperla, Marco Oderda, Carlo Ceruti, Bernardo Rocco, Riccardo Schiavina, Lorenzo Bianchi, Andrea Mari, Fabrizio Di Maida, Orietta Dalpiaz, Antonio Celia, Marco Pirozzi, Pierluigi Bove, Valerio Iacovelli, Angelo Cafarelli, Luca Cindolo, Giovanni Ferrari, Lorenzo Gatti, Giacomo Pirola, Filippo Annino, Luigi Pucci, Daniele Romagnoli, Walter Artibani, and Andrea Minervini.
• Department of Urology, Policlinico Abano Terme, Abano Terme, Italy.
• Urol. Int. 2020 Jan 1; 104 (7-8): 631-636.

PurposeThe coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has put a substantial burden on the Italian healthcare system, resulting in the restructuring of hospitals to care for COVID-19 patients. However, this has likely impacted access to care for patients experiencing other conditions. We aimed to quantify the impact of COVID-19 on access to care for patients with urgent/emergent urological conditions throughout Italy.Materials And MethodsA questionnaire was sent to 33 urological units in the AGILE consortium, asking clinicians to report on the number of urgent/emergent urological patients seen and/or undergoing surgery over a 3-week period during the peak of the COVID-19 outbreak and a reference week prior to the outbreak. ANOVA and linear regression models were used to quantify these changes.ResultsData from 27 urological centres in Italy showed a decrease from 956 patients/week seen just prior to the outbreak to 291 patients/week seen by the end of the study period. There was a difference in the number of patients with urgent/emergent urological disease seen within/during the different weeks (all p values < 0.05). A significant decrease in the number of patients presenting with haematuria, urinary retention, urinary tract infection, scrotal pain, renal colic, or trauma and urgent/emergent cases that required surgery was reported (all p values < 0.05).ConclusionIn Italy, during the COVID-19 outbreak there has been a decrease in patients seeking help for urgent/emergent urological conditions. Restructuring of hospitals and clinics is mandatory to cope with the COVID-19 pandemic; however, the healthcare system should continue to provide adequate levels of care also to patients with other conditions.© 2020 S. Karger AG, Basel.

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