A three-year overview of the pattern and outcome of medical conditions in the medical wards of Federal Medical Centre

Abstract

INTRODUCTION: Hospital admissions reflect the pattern of illnesses in society, and its
documentation in various localities may provide clues on decision-making and implementations
in the health sector. This study aimed to ascertain the reasons for admission and outcome in the
medical wards of the Federal Medical Centre, Yenagoa, Nigeria.
METHODS: The medical records of all patients admitted into the medical wards during the
study were retrospectively reviewed. Disease classification was done according to the ICD-10
classification system. Relevant data were obtained from the admission and discharge registers
and were analyzed using Statistical Package for Social Sciences version- 22.
RESULTS: A total of 1,782 subjects comprising 933 males (52.4%) and 849 females (47.6%) were
represented in the final data analysis. The majority of the admitted patients were in their 6th and
7th decade of life (18.5% and 18.6%, respectively). Cardiovascular diseases were the commonest
indication for annual medical admission, with a cumulative frequency of 35.5%. Stroke and
heart failure were the most common cardiovascular diseases. Infectious diseases were the
second leading cause of medical admission (19.5%). The least common medical disorders were
rheumatological dermatological and toxicological conditions representing 0.5%, 0.2%, and 0.2%,
respectively, of all medical admissions. The overall mortality during the study period is 16.5%,
with malignant diseases being the leading cause of death.
CONCLUSION: This study reflects the epidemics of non-communicable diseases in developing
countries and the need for policymakers to be aware of this trend without neglecting to prevent
infectious diseases, whose burden is still high.