Ear, Nose and Throat Conditions at The Ho Teaching Hospital in The Volta Region of Ghana A Retrospective Review (2021 – 2024)

Abstract

Background: Ear, Nose, and Throat (ENT) disorders are a major concern in resource-limited settings. This study assessed the disease conditions, presentation patterns and severity levels, and medical treatment patterns of ENT conditions at Ho Teaching Hospital (2021–2024). Methods: A retrospective cross-sectional review of 24,335 medical records from the LHIMS database was conducted. Descriptive and inferential analyses, including Chi-square and multinomial logistic regression, were performed using SPSS version 25. Results: The study found that most patients were aged 1–10 years (28.93%) and female (57.80%), with common conditions including impacted cerumen and otitis externa. Ear infections were most prevalent but declined over time. The main treatments were use of antibiotics (34.25%) for curative and use of analgesics (44.12%) for pain reliefs. Bivariate analysis revealed significant associations between sociodemographic factors (age, gender, pregnancy status) and the type, pattern, and severity of conditions (all p = 0.00). Multivariate analysis showed that males were less likely to have ear infections (AOR = 0.388, p < 0.0001), pregnant women had a higher likelihood of ear (AOR = 2.575, p < 0.0001) and nose infections (COR = 1.759, p = 0.000). Males were more likely to have throat infections (AOR = 1.660, p < 0.0001), and pregnant women were less likely (AOR = 0.602, p < 0.0001). Additionally, males were less likely to experience benign ENT conditions (AOR = 1.623, p < 0.0001) and mild ENT conditions (AOR = 0.643, p < 0.0001), while pregnant women had a higher likelihood for both (AOR = 1.561, p < 0.0001). Conclusion: ENT conditions at HTH mainly affect children, with ear infections being most common. Age, gender and pregnancy status were significant predictors of the type of condition, disease pattern and severity, underscoring the need for demographic-specific interventions and improved diagnostic resources.