(289) Has the COVID-19 Pandemic Impacted Penile Implant Public Interest in the US?

Abstract

Abstract Introduction The COVID-19 pandemic has significantly impacted various aspects of society, including healthcare-seeking behaviors. Online search trends have become valuable indicators of public health concerns and interests. Objective This study focuses on the search trends for penile implants to understand how these trends have changed in different metro/county income levels pre- and post-COVID-19. Methods Data on Google search trends for penile implant procedures were collected for specific metropolitan areas before and after the COVID-19 pandemic. The metropolitan areas with the highest search intents were further analyzed. Average household income and per capita income, based off 2021 US Census Bureau, were calculated for the top five metropolitan hot spots (household income, per capita income before and after the pandemic) then visualized in a linear model. Results Between 2016 and 2023, pre- and post- COVID-19, the interest in penile implants has been steadily increasing on average in the US (figure 1). Within these interest groups, a handful of counties account for the most searches that result in the following surges, and are associated with specific socioeconomic backgrounds and events. Before COVID-19, the average household income of counties most interested in penile implants was $53,215.80 (39th percentile) and the per capita median income was $34,626.80 (37th percentile). Post-COVID-19, both of these averages decreased over time to $50, 945.17 (37th percentile) and $31, 435.17, respectively (34th percentile) (figure 2). Conclusions This study demonstrates significant increases in Google search trends for penile implant procedures after the COVID-19 pandemic. Before the pandemic, higher-income regions demonstrated more interest in penile implant searches, potentially linked to affluence and investment in men’s health, compared to more interest in lower income regions post-pandemic. Disclosure Any of the authors act as a consultant, employee or shareholder of an industry for: Advisory board and speaker for Coloplast; consultant for Cynosure; advisory board and speaker for Halozyme; intellectual property with Masimo; advisory board for Promescent; consultant for Sprout; advisory board for Xialla.