Recent statistics show that almost 1/4 of a million people have died and four million people are affected either with mild or serious health problems caused by coronavirus (COVID‐19). These numbers are rapidly increasing (World Health Organization, May 3, 2020c). There is much concern during this pandemic about the spread of misleading or inaccurate information. This article reports on a small study which attempted to identify the types and sources of COVID‐19 misinformation. The authors identified and analysed 1225 pieces of COVID‐19 fake news stories taken from fact‐checkers, myth‐busters and COVID‐19 dashboards. The study is significant given the concern raised by the WHO Director‐General that ‘we are not just fighting the pandemic, we are also fighting infodemic’. The study concludes that the COVID‐19 infodemic is full of false claims, half backed conspiracy theories and pseudoscientific therapies, regarding the diagnosis, treatment, prevention, origin and spread of the virus. Fake news is pervasive in social media, putting public health at risk. The scale of the crisis and ubiquity of the misleading information require that scientists, health information professionals and journalists exercise their professional responsibility to help the general public identify fake news stories. They should ensure that accurate information is published and disseminated. J.M.

Stress urinary incontinence (SUI) is a common medical problem affecting 25% to 50% of women in the United States. This article reviews the literature on the current systems- and population-based costs of management of SUI in women. A PubMed search was conducted to seek studies examining the cost of various management options. Both nonsurgical and surgical management can effectively improve symptoms of SUI at a wide spectrum of costs. Over $12 billion are spent annually, an amount that continues to grow. Patients pay out-of-pocket for 70% of conservative management, amounting to a significant individual financial burden. Systems-based cost of SUI management continues to rise with the aging population. Costs to both individuals and systems may be mitigated if more patients are treated with intent to cure and as surgical management transitions from inpatient to outpatient procedures.

OBJECTIVE Recurrent pelvic organ prolapse (POP) has been attributed to many factors, one of which is lack of vaginal apical support. To assess the role of vaginal apical support and POP, we analyzed a national dataset to compare long-term reoperation rates after prolapse surgery performed with and without apical support. METHODS Public Use File data on a 5% random national sample of female Medicare beneficiaries was obtained from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. Women with POP who underwent surgery during 1999 were identified by relevant International Classification of Diseases, 9th revision, Clinical Modification and Current Procedural Terminology, 4th edition codes. Individual patients were followed through 2009. Prolapse repair was categorized as anterior, posterior, or anterior–posterior with or without a concomitant apical suspension procedure. The primary outcome was the rate of retreatment for POP. RESULTS In 1999, 21,245 women had a diagnosis of POP. Of these, 3,244 (15.3%) underwent prolapse surgery that year. There were 2,756 women who underwent an anterior colporrhapy, posterior colporrhaphy, or both with or without apical suspension. After 10 years, cumulative reoperation rates were highest among women who had an isolated anterior repair (20.2%) and significantly exceeded reoperation rates among women who had a concomitant apical support procedure (11.6%, p < 0.01). CONCLUSION Ten years after surgery for POP, the reoperation rate was significantly reduced when a concomitant apical suspension procedure was performed.