Comparing Kidney Care during the Pandemic in Hospitalized Non-COVID-19 Patients

Abstract

INTRODUCTION: Coronavirus disease 19 (COVID-19) has caused a direct increase in mortality but not all of it is entirely attributable to COVID-19, meaning there was a higher rate of mortality in non-COVID-19 patients due to the pandemic. The aim of this study was to compare two groups of patients: group 1, which included all of the patients admitted to the Internal Medicine ward during the month of April in the year 2019 and group 2, composed of all of the patients admitted to the same ward in April 2020 (a non-COVID ward) and to identify factors which were closely related with worse renal function in two group of patients.
METHODS: Retrospective observational study carried out through the analysis of digital data of all non-COVID-19 patients admitted at an Internal Medicine ward in April 2019 (group 1) and April 2020 (group 2).
RESULTS: A total of 162 patients were included. Group 1 represented 63.6% of the patients and group 2 represented 36.4%. Although there was a significant difference (p<0.001) between baseline creatinine and that presented at admission for hospitalization in both groups, the difference was markedly greater in the second group when compared to the first group. The worsening of renal function, measured by the CKD-EPI formula, was associated with higher mortality, which was higher in the 2020 group.
CONCLUSION: There was a sense of fear imposed by the pandemic, which delayed resorting to medical care. This increased the severity of medical conditions. In the post-pandemic aftermath, it is essential that General and Family Medicine coordinate effectively with different medical specialties to jointly improve the follow-up of our patients.