Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2022 Aug;37(8):1867-1875.
doi: 10.1007/s00467-021-05226-1. Epub 2021 Dec 31.

Impact of coronavirus disease-2019 on pediatric nephrology practice and education: an ESPN survey

Burcu Yazıcıoğlu  1 , Sevcan A Bakkaloğlu  2 ; European Society for Pediatric Nephrology
Collaborators, Affiliations

Impact of coronavirus disease-2019 on pediatric nephrology practice and education: an ESPN survey

Burcu Yazıcıoğlu et al. Pediatr Nephrol. 2022 Aug.

Erratum in

Abstract

Background: Coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19) has been challenging for patients and medical staff. Radical changes have been needed to prevent disruptions in patient care and medical education.

Methods: A web-based survey was sent to European Society for Pediatric Nephrology (ESPN) members via the ESPN mailing list to evaluate the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on delivery of pediatric nephrology (PN) care and educational activities. There were ten questions with subheadings.

Results: Seventy-six centers from 24 countries completed the survey. The time period was between the beginning of the pandemic and May 30, 2020. The number of patients admitted in PN wards and outpatient clinics were significantly decreased (2.2 and 4.5 times, respectively). Telemedicine tools, electronic prescriptions, online applications for off-label drugs, and remote access to laboratory/imaging results were used in almost half of the centers. Despite staff training and protective measures, 33% of centers reported COVID-19 infected staff, and 29% infected patients. Difficulties in receiving pharmaceuticals were reported in 25% of centers. Sixty percent of centers suspended living-related kidney transplantation, and one-third deceased-donor kidney transplantation. Hands-on education was suspended in 91% of medical schools, and face-to-face teaching was replaced by online systems in 85%. Multidisciplinary training in PN was affected in 54% of the centers.

Conclusions: This survey showed a sharp decline in patient admissions and a significant decrease in kidney transplantation. Telemedicine and online teaching became essential tools, requiring integration into the current system. The prolonged and fluctuating course of the pandemic may pose additional challenges necessitating urgent and rational solutions.

Keywords: COVID-19; Children; Education; Pediatric nephrology; Telemedicine.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no competing interests.

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
Changes in the average number of pediatric nephrology patients admitted during the COVID-19 pandemic* and the same time in 2019 (*the time period from the beginning of the pandemic to May 30, 2020)
Fig. 2
Fig. 2
Telehealth tools used in pediatric nephrology settings during the COVID-19 pandemic. *Percentage of centers, **number of centers
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. Lu R, Zhao X, Li J, Niu P, Yang B, Wu H, Wang W, Song H, Huang B, Zhu N, Bi Y, Ma X, Zhan F, Wang L, Hu T, Zhou H, Hu Z, Zhou W, Zhao L, Chen J, Meng Y, Wang J, Lin Y, Yuan J, Xie Z, Ma J, Liu WJ, Wang D, Xu W, Holmes EC, Gao GF, Wu G, Chen W, Shi W, Tan W. Genomic characterisation and epidemiology of 2019 novel coronavirus: implications for virus origins and receptor binding. Lancet. 2020;395:565–574. doi: 10.1016/S0140-6736(20)30251-8. - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. World Health Organisation (2020) Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic. https://www.euro.who.int/en/health-topics/health-emergencies/coronavirus.... Accessed 23 November 2020
    1. Bernard SS, Rolland P, Silue Y, Mailles A, Campese C, Simondon A, Mechain M, Meurice L, Nguyen M, Bassi C, Yamani E, Behillil S, Ismael S, Nguyen D, Malvy D, Lescure FX, Georges S, Lazarus C, Tabaï A, Stempfelet M, Enouf V, Coignard B, Levy-Bruhl D; Investigation Team (2020) First cases of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) in France: surveillance, investigations and control measures. Euro Surveill 25:2000094 - PMC - PubMed
    1. Turkish Ministry of Health COVID-19 information platform (2020) Daily COVID-19 Table. https://covid19.saglik.gov.tr/. Accessed 23 November 2020
    1. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (2020) Public health activity guidance. https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/hcp/non-covid-19-client-intera.... Accessed 23 November 2020