A Retrospective Analysis of Cases Evaluated by Endoscopy in a Newly-Established Endoscopy Unit at A Second-Level Hospital

Abstract

The aim of this study is to retrospectively analyze the cases who underwent upper and lower gastrointestinal system endoscopic evaluation between 2021-2022 in the endoscopy unit, which was established for the first time in a second level hospital, and to emphasize the importance of endoscopy units in district hospitals located far from central hospitals. The study comes to the fore in terms of dealing with the data of a district hospital where an endoscopy unit was established for the first time. The data of 440 patients who underwent endoscopic evaluation were analyzed. The study included 320 patients who underwent upper gastrointestinal tract and 120 who underwent lower gastrointestinal tract endoscopic examination. The endoscopic and pathological diagnoses given to patients were examined based on the data obtained, and descriptive statistics were performed. The cases undergoing upper gastrointestinal endoscopic examination had a mean age of 53.93±16.14 years, and those undergoing lower gastrointestinal tract endoscopic examination had a mean age of 53.71±15.86. Of cases undergoing upper gastrointestinal tract endoscopic examination, 70.3% had antral gastritis (n=225), 34.8% had ulcers (n=111), 10.3% had hiatus hernia (n=28), 9.1% had esophagitis (n=29), and 9.1% had duodenitis (n=29). Among the cases endoscopically diagnosed with cancer, 0.9% were localized in the distal esophagus (n=3) and 0.6% in the antrum (n=3). Of cases undergoing lower gastrointestinal tract endoscopic examination, 20% were diagnosed with polyp (n=24), 10% with diverticulum (n=12), 3.3% with hemorrhoidal disease (n=4), and 5% with cancer (n=6). As a result, the data obtained from the study emphasize the importance of endoscopy units in district hospitals located far from central hospitals