Frequency of renal colic during the month of Ramadan

Abstract EN

Objective : to evaluate the effect of fasting during the month of ramadan, which requires abstinence from fluid and food intake from sunrise to sunset (approximately 13-16 hours) daily for a whole month, on the frequency of emergency room visits for renal collic.

design : a retrospective observational study.

setting : bahrain defence force hospital, Bahrain.

method : a retrospective study was performed to evaluate the frequency of emergency room visits with diagnosis of renal colic one month prior to Ramadan, during Ramadan, and the month following Ramadan from April 2018 to July 2018 and April 2019 to July 2019.

result : a total of 809 consecutive patients diagnosed with renal colic from April 2018 to July 2018 and April 2019 to July 2019 were included in the study.

the total number of visits during the pre-Ramadan period was 200 (24.7%), 309 (38.2%) during Ramadan, and 300 (37.1%) post Ramadan.

conclusion : the frequency of visits to the ER with renal colic is noticeably higher during Ramadan and the following month, which may be attributable to fasting.