Magnitude and Predictors of Urologic Emergencies outcome: a Tertiary Hospital-based cross-sectional study

Background Urologic emergencies are conditions related to urology that need to be managed immediately to prevent severe and permanent morbidity or death. These include a different spectrum of diseases and may be related to traumatic or non-traumatic causes. There have been few studies conducted on this aspect, and accordingly, although they don’t account for the majority of causes of emergency visits, the disease burden is high. It also revealed geographical variations in the presentation of urological emergencies, with an incidence ranging from 1.5% to 34% of emergency department admissions. Method A prospective cross-sectional study was conducted at a tertiary hospital between August 1 and November 30, 2024, among all adult patients with urologic emergencies who visited the emergency department during the study period. Data were collected using Kobo Toolbox and analyzed with SPSS v27. Descriptive statistics were presented in tables and figures. Variables with P < 0.25 in bivariate analysis were entered into multivariate logistic regression. Associations were expressed as adjusted odds ratios (AORs) with 95% confidence intervals (CIs), and P < 0.05 indicated significance. Result About 162 patients were included in the study, and urologic emergencies account for 12.2% (176/1446) of all surgical emergencies. The most common presentation of urologic emergency patients was flank pain, at 100 (61.7%), followed by urinary retention, at 23 (14.2%), and hematuria, at 12 (7.4%). Trauma related to the Genitourinary system, which is seen in 14(8.6%), is among the reasons for emergency visits during the study period. Emergency intervention was done for (n = 151, 93%) of the patients, with the most common procedure performed for non-traumatic urologic emergencies being Ureteric stenting for 46 (30.5%), Percutaneous nephrostomy for 27(17.9%), transurethral catheterization for 23(15.2%), and stone extraction for (n = 19 12.5%). Patients who came within 1 month or less duration of symptoms have approximately 4.3 times higher odds of improved outcome when compared with those with duration of symptoms of > 1month (AOR: 4,34; 95% CI: 1.45–12.99). Additionally, having increased abnormal creatinine at presentation has inversely affected improved outcome by an odds ratio of 0.1(95% CI: 0.01–0.82). Conclusion Urological emergencies account for a significant proportion of all emergency surgery presentations. Renal colic with or without obstructive uropathy is the leading cause of surgical emergency admissions in this geographic area. Delayed presentation and abnormal creatinine level at presentation negatively affect the outcome of patients.