Status of SWL Indicated Patients with Urolithiasis during the Era of SARS-Cov-2 Pandemia

Abstract

Purpose: It was aimed to investigate the effects of the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic period on SWL indicated patients with urolithiasis. Method: Medical records of SWL indicated patients with urolithiasis were obtained before and after the SARS-CoV-2 outbreak, covering the period between January 2019 and December 2021. The study was divided into two time periods as the pre-lockdown and the post-lockdown periods due to quarantine curfew. The data regarding the patient and stone characteristics were obtained from the records and compared between the time periods. Results: A sum of 286 patients who underwent SWL treatment due to urolithiasis between January 2019 and December 2021 were included into the study. 45% of these patients were treated with SWL in pre-lockdown period and 55% were treated with SWL in post-lockdown period. The mean size of SWL indicated stones were 10.84 ± 4.82mm. While the pre-lockdown mean size was 9.76 ± 4.31mm, the post-lockdown mean size was 11.71 ± 5.04mm (p=0.001) and there was a tendency to increase in stone size after the lockdown. A tendency to increase in stone firmness and radiodensity was observed after the lockdown. While there were recurrent stones in 43% of pre-lockdown patients, new stone formation occurred in 19% of post-lockdown patients that this finding might be interpreted as an increase in stone count. Conclusion: According to these results, the stone characteristics of SWL indicated patients are directly affected as a result of lockdown due to the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic.