Effect of COVID-19 Pandemic on Diagnosis and Treatment Delays in Urological Disease: Single-Institution Experience

PURPOSE: In the background of the global pandemic, we aim to investigate the effect of COVID-19 on diagnosis and treatment delay in urology patients. PATIENTS AND METHODS: A total of 4919 inpatients were identified from the urological department in our institution, including 2947 and 1972 patients within 9 months before and after the outbreak (group A and group B). The baseline characteristics and residential population of different types of diseases were compared in the two groups. Patients who underwent delay of diagnosis or treatment with poor outcomes were described. RESULTS: Our result revealed a 33.1% decrease of total resident population as well as a 44.8% decline in bed utilization rate after the outbreak. Significant differences were found between group A and group B in gender (P=0.024) and patients living alone or not (P=0.026). The hospitalization rate of patients with malignancy increased significantly while that of benign patients decreased during the epidemic (P<0.001). Besides, we identified 5 cases with bladder cancer and 3 cases with prostate cancer that underwent delay of diagnosis or treatment with unfavorable consequences. CONCLUSION: With the impact of COVID-19, delay in diagnosis or treatment of non-COVID-19 diseases is inevitable whether the medical resources allocation is effective or not. Psychological status of patients might be the major cause of postponing diagnosis or treatment. For urological patients with locally advanced tumor or rapid progression, who need long-term postoperative intervention, the delay of regular treatment could lead to inevitable progression or recurrence.