Morbidity of foreign travelers in Attica, Greece: a retrospective study

Patient house calls in Attica and Thessaloniki, Greece (2005-2015): a model for out-of-hospital multispecialty emergency medicine

BACKGROUND

The SOS-doctors are a network of physicians who perform house-call visits in the areas of Attica and Thessaloniki, Greece.

METHODS

Patients requesting medical services by the SOS doctors during the period 1/1/2005 - 31/12/2015 were eligible for inclusion in this retrospective analysis.

RESULTS

During this period 335, 212 home visits were performed. Females used this service more frequently compared to males (60.5% versus 39.5%). Among the age-groups, patients aged over 75 years made 56.6% of all house calls. Fewer phone requests were recorded during autumn than in winter (21.1% versus 29.1%). Infections were the most common cause of house-visits (29%), followed by cardiovascular diseases (10.3%), musculoskeletal (9.1%), gastrointestinal (6.3%) and neurological disorders (3.7%). An increasing demand for radiology at home was observed, starting at 352 calls in 2009 and reaching 2230 in 2015. Finally, 9.2% of patients were advised to be admitted into a hospital.

CONCLUSION

A shift towards older age, but not the oldest old (> 90 years), and acute conditions was observed during the study period. The study confirms that home visits retain a significant role in the modern health care systems.

Morbidity and outcomes of foreign travelers in Zakynthos island, Greece: a retrospective study

Background

Although there is satisfactory recording of diseases affecting travelers visiting developing countries, little is known regarding morbidity of travelers when visiting developed countries. We sought to evaluate the morbidity of foreign travelers in Zakynthos, a popular Greek island attracting large number of foreign tourists every summer.

Methods

Data from foreign travelers that accommodated in Zakynthos and sought medical services from the private offices of Zante Medical Care from May 1 to October 30 2012 were retrospectively analyzed.

Results

Two thousand six hundred and eighty-eight patients were included in the study. The mean age (±SD) of the patients whom the age was recorded was 29.6 (±18.3) and 51.5% of them were from 18 to 40 years old. Disorders of the respiratory tract (32.7%), dermatologic conditions (21.1%), musculoskeletal injuries (16.4%), and gastrointestinal disorders (16.3%) were the four most prevalent clinical categories among patients. Ear disorder was the most common syndromic description (14.5%) among which 81.2% were ear infections; otitis externa and otitis media were diagnosed in 8.5% and 3.3% patients in total. The most common specific diagnosis was gastroenteritis (14.3%). Insect bite and sunburn were the most common diagnosis (6.5% and 3.8%, respectively) among patients with a dermatologic condition. Ear infection was the most common diagnosis in pediatric patients.

Conclusion

Disorders mainly of the upper respiratory tract were the predominant causes of illness among foreign travelers in Zakynthos. Traveler's diarrhea was the most common specific diagnosis but the prevalence within the total population was not very high.