Influence Of Covid-19 Pandemic On Stress Levels Of Urologic Patients

Introduction - Several studies have shown the consequences of COVID-19 pandemic on perceived stress of different populations, but none of them analyzed urological patients who underwent elective surgery.Methods - We enrolled prospectively patients who underwent elective surgery between March and October 2020. A survey on COVID-19 and the 4-item Perceived Stress Scale (PPS-4) questionnaire were administered at hospital admission. Demographic and medical history data were also collected. Uni-and multivariate analyses were performed to identify independent predictors of higher PSS-4 values (>= 7).Results - A total of 200 patients were enrolled. Mean PSS-4 value resulted 6.04. Patients with PSS-4 value >= 7 resulted 43.5% (87/200). In multivariate analysis, PSS-4 value >= 7 was independently associated (p < 0.05) with female gender (OR 6.42), oncological disease (OR 2.87), high (>5 in a range between 0 and 10) fear of intrahospital transmission of SARS-CoV-2 infection (OR 4.75), history of bladder instillation (OR 0.26), and current smokers (OR 0.27)Conclusion - High PSS-4 values at hospital admission in urologic surgical patients are positively correlated with female gender, fear of intrahospital transmission of SARS-CoV-2 infection, and oncological disease. PSS-4 questionnaire could be useful to select patients for whom a preadmission coun selling is necessary to improve the management of their high stress level.