Trends of Acute Renal Colic During COVID-19 Lockdown: An Experience From Saudi Arabia

Introduction The COVID-19 pandemic represents an unprecedented challenge for healthcare systems around the world. Saudi Arabia was one of the first countries to experience a lockdown and postponement of elective surgical procedures. The objective of this study was to assess the trends of acute renal colic presenting to our emergency department. Methods This retrospective study targeted all patients who presented with acute renal colic during the lockdown period (March 23, 2019 to June 20, 2019). Patients' and stone data were collected. The patient's data included age, gender, BMI, and comorbidities. Stones' data included stone size, location, side, evidence of obstruction and UTI, and planned and conducted management. Results A total of 137 patients were identified; 92 (67.2%) patients were males with a mean age of 44 ± 16 years. Positive history of urolithiasis was reported in 47 (34.3%). The most common initial investigation was non-contrast CTs (93.4%). The majority of patients had a stone size of < 10 mm (93%) and ureteric stones (81.2%). A total of 32 patients (32.4%) had evidence of UTI and 63.4% had evidence of obstruction. Most of the patients (73.7%) were offered medical expulsive therapy (MET). Only 2.2% did not receive the planned management. Conclusion The observed pattern shows that the management during the lockdown did not differ from the original recommendations. This could be due to the fact that most patients had stone sizes between 5 and 10 mm and consequently were managed by METs. Larger data need to be conducted to provide concrete evidence. Such data are relevant to provide a clear guide for management and to establish protocols for emergency lockdown situations.