Nehat Baftiu

Objective Medical management of exocranial otogenic complications represents a challenge for a medical system of a country in general, especially for ENT services. The goal of this study is to find some answers on demographic data, clinical symptoms and signs, diagnostics, and especially therapy for these complications in young patients. Method The study is retrospective, performed in the ENT clinic of the University Clinical Center of Kosova in Prishtina and covers 10 years (from 01.06.2000 to 01.06.2010) and includes all young aged patients (1–18 years) hospitalized because of exocranial otogenic complications. Results From a total of 35 patients, male were 22 (63%) and females 13 (37%). The commonest complications were: mastoiditis in 18 (51.4%) and subperiosteal mastoidal abscess in 12 cases (34%) than rarest complications were: Bezold's abscess in 2 cases, facial nerve paresis, labyrinthitis, and combined complication one case each. Diagnostics of these cases were based on the clinical appearance, laboratory analyses, and clinical imaging. Treatment of these patients was surgical, medical, and combined: 3 of the medical therapy only (intravenous antibiotics), and 32 others were treated surgically: cortical mastoidectomy in 16 (45%) of cases, mastoidectomy and aeration tube insertion in 6 (17%) and antrotomy in 3 (8.5%) of cases. None of these series of patients died and none of them had permanent sequels. Conclusion Timely diagnostics and adequate treatment of exocranial otogenic complications made it possible that our results can be comparable with the results of other referent centers cited in the recent literature.

Case studies revealed an astonishingly low number of current among patients suffering from symptomatic COVID-19 compared to general population, leading to the conclusion that smoking/nicotine uptake might have a preventive effect. This study aims to show the relation between smoking habits, present and past, and severity and outcome in COVID-19 patients hospitalized in the ICU of the University Hospital in Pristina. This paper reports the results of possible association between smoking habits and severity and outcome of COVID-19. Data on smoking habits, present and past, among 73 patients with severe COVID-19 hospitalized at ICU are analysed and presented. Smokers (active and ex-smokers) in total were 16 (21.9%) cases (P<0.0001); active smokers were 5 (6.8%) cases (P<0.0001), ex-smokers 11 (15.1%) cases (P<0.0001), and non-smokers were 57 (78.1%) of the cases. From 16 cases (21.92%) identified as active smoker and ex-smoker, 8 of them ended with death, and other 8 cases survived; while 40 cases (54.79%) from the non-smoker group died, while 17 cases (23.29%) from this group survived (95% CI: 0.2881 to 1.5430, P=0.3792). Out of 5 (6.85%) cases of active smokers, 3 (4.11%) of them ended with death (95% CI: 0.1692 to 2.6846, P=0.855); while from 11 (15.07%) of ex-smokers, 5 (6.85%) died (95% CI: 0.1995 to 1.6412, P=0.3561). OR for death among smoker group of cases (active and ex-smokers) was 0.4250 (95% CI: 0.1370 to 1.3189, P=0.1386); for active smokers 0.2550 (95% CI: 0.0547 to 1.1892, p=0.0820), and 0.3542 (95% CI: 0.0950 to 1.3199, P=0.1220) for ex-smokers. Data on the influence of smoking on incidence and severity of COVID-19 ICU cases are conflicting. A protective effect of smoking in COVID-19 should not be inferred.

The process of patient referral system at the level of health care is a comprehensive institutional framework with responsible, well-defined competencies, as a network of cooperation with the general goal of maintaining health, treatment, stabilization, transport and medical care up to in the complete recovery of the sick. The process of patient referral system in most countries in Europe and in the world is a challenge for most developing and developed countries. The mechanisms of the referral system function at different national, regional and municipal levels based on national laws and policies and work on the basis of efficient lines of communication by creating clear and simple steps and procedures described. The referral system in Kosovo is disorganized, chaotic, the Ministry of Health must have a national document of the referral system for patients at the health level, and before that all health care professionals are educated, trained on the way of the referral system, which cases must be sent from the primary, secondary and tertiary level. At the national level, the National Coordinating Council with a national plan of the patient referral system can convey the quality; help the health care professionals based on the current health legislation, the harmonization of unique standardized protocols with follow-up guidelines. Patients at the country level.