Rare intervention performed at Shkodra Hospital/ Doctors' appeal

2025-02-04 13:17:00, Aktualitet CNA

The Shkodra Regional Hospital has, for the first time, performed a rare intervention in Albania, carotid artery stenting in a patient with cerebral ischemia.

One of the doctors who participated in this special operation for the Albanian healthcare system, surgeon Besmi Grizhja, says that if there is continued advanced logistical support, then it is possible that these operations will be more frequent at the Shkodra hospital.

"An achievement that we have made together with other colleagues, a stenting of the carotid artery because it is the first time that it is done by doctors at the Shkodra hospital. This intervention was performed on a patient who fortunately was initially diagnosed by neurologists with a stenosis of the carotid artery, for a transient cerebral ischemia, unfortunately unsuitable for surgery but we decided on the option of endovascular treatment.

Certainly a new but very modern way of treating cerebral ischemia. Through this, it is possible to reduce the risk of another ischemia that would be potentially invasive for the patient and with a much reduced hospital stay compared to traditional surgery and other methods of treating ischemia.

Of course, the patient has left the hospital in very good condition. What we want to say is that this procedure should not remain random or in single-digit numbers but certainly also in the will and desire of the directorate to further support this new thing that is certainly very advantageous for the entire region and for the advantages and benefits not only social and clinical of the patient but certainly also much more economical than a dynamic follow-up with medications and others.

I want to thank the doctors for their readiness because the cooperation of all hospital links is at satisfactory levels and we can say that we offer the same service as outside Albania for this health condition, leaving nothing lacking.

In the Albanian public system, such interventions can be cases with droppers, of course we are not discussing private hospitals and their specifics here, but in the public system they are very rare, I believe no more than 2-3 cases.

To have other similar interventions in the Shkodra hospital, there is a need for much more advanced logistical support than for other diseases. Of course, it is not a very large cost compared to the benefits that patients have in terms of time and clinical condition, but funds must definitely be redistributed and reprioritized.

This intervention in our hospital is completely accessible and I can say without fear that we offer the same service as outside Albania and in accordance with European vascular disease protocols for the treatment of carotid artery stenosis.

"About 30% of cerebral ischemias are related to carotid stenosis and considering that neurology admissions are over 100 per year, we will have about 30 patients who need urgent intervention. Compared to a similar treatment in the private system, the hospital cost can be somewhere around a quarter, but in the public system, patients do not pay because the hospital covers it."

Cardiologist Enkelejd Lohja, who was also part of this rare intervention at Shkodra Hospital, says that this operation may become a common procedure in the future.

"The invasive procedure we have done is a new thing that has been done in the Shkodra hospital. My colleagues and I deal with coronary artery angioplasty every day, that is, stenting the blood vessels of the heart, and what we have done with stenting the carotid arteries is a new thing for us that could become a common practice, such as stenting the coronary arteries. Of course, the medical protocols are clear, but the time may come for treating the coronary arteries and the carotid arteries to become common."

The patient who underwent this intervention at the Shkodra hospital is in good health and was discharged from the hospital shortly after. After the treatment of this case, the Minister of Health, Albana Koçiu, also reacted, congratulating the Shkodra doctors for this case.

"For the first time, carotid artery stenting, an advanced endovascular procedure that offers a less invasive alternative for high-risk patients, has been successfully performed at Shkodra Regional Hospital. This case involved an 84-year-old patient, diagnosed with TIA (Transient Ischemic Attack), who was not suitable for traditional surgical intervention."

This success represents an important step forward for Shkodra Regional Hospital, positioning it as a center that offers complete protocols and advanced treatments for vascular diseases.

"This commitment shows the hospital's dedication to providing specialized and quality medical services to patients. Gratitude to the medical team: Dr. Besmir Grizhja, Dr. Enkelejd Lohja, Dr. Gledis Zaimi and Dr. Genc Nurja and the nursing staff, including Ermal Dibra, Afrim Bashi and Ilir Dizdari," Minister Koçiu wrote on the social network Facebook./ CNA