BACKGROUND/AIM Chronic sinusitis is a disease characterized with mucosal inflammation of nasal and paranasal sinuses for at least 12 weeks. In order to assess the extent and severity of inflammatory changes in paranasal sinuses CT score according to Lund-Mackay is the most commonly used. Recent studies show the possibility of existing different subtipes of chronic rhinosinusitis, pointing out the presence of nasal polyps and their influence on the severity of chronic rhinosinusitis. The aim of this research was to examine the influence of sinonasal polyposis on the extensity of inflammatory changes on computerized tomography (CT), evaluated by the Lund-Mackay CT score. METHODS A prospective study compared the Lund-Mackay CT score values between the patients with chronic rhinosinusitis associated with nasal polyps and those without them. We determined mean values of the total CT score in both groups of the patients, as well as mean values of CT score for each group of sinuses and ostiomeatal complexes. RESULTS The study included 90 patients, 47 males and 43 females, 45-year old on average, diagnosed with chronic rhinosinusitis on the basis of diagnostic algorithm. The group with uncomplicated chronic rhinosinusitis (without nasal polyps) consisted of 30 patients and the group with complicated chronic rhinosinusitis (with nasal polyps) of 60 patients. Observing these two groups of patients revealed statistically highly important intergroup difference in CT score for each group of sinuses and ostiomeatal complexes. The mean value of total CT score in the group with uncomplicated chronic rhinosinusitis was 4.37 while in the group with complicated chronic rhinosinusitis it was 16.05 (p < 0.01). CONCLUSION Chronic rhinosinusitis complicated by sinonasal polyposis is characterized with more extensive inflammatory changes on CT and, consequently, with higher CT score for each group of sinuses and ostiomeatal complexes, as well as higher total CT score.

Summary Introduction: XXII European Congress of Medical Informatics (MIe 2009) took place in Sarajevo from August 30th to September 2nd 2009. Assessment of quality of papers presented at MIe 2009 was a process of observation, measurement, comparison and evaluation of the quality of orally presented papers. Methodology: For this study, and for the first time since EFMI founding (1976) and MIE congresses, the authors introduced a specially created quality assessment form with five relevant paper quality variables (methodological approach, international influence, scientific content, language quality, technical features) which the first author of this article used in peer-review process of papers submitted for publication in the journal Acta Informatica Medica (as Editor-in-Chief for last 18 years). The survey was conducted on the principle of random sampling of participants of MIE 2009 Conference in Sarajevo, where specially trained interviewers (final year students of medicine and engineering at the University of Sarajevo) interviewed 33 session’s chairs and 110 participants/listeners of MIE 2009 paper presentations in 33 sessions (of total 40). Data was collected, entered into a specially created database, analyzed and presented. Results: From the total of 150 oral presentations at the MIE 2009, 110 oral presentations were graded by both chairs and participants/ listeners. Grading results were compared and we found that in 60% of cases (66 papers) session chairs gave higher ratings than other participants of the congress. The highest rating was 10, and the lowest 3. Only 3 of the papers received all four grades 10 from the session chairs. The most common grade given by chairs of the session was 8 (26.36%), followed by 7 (20%), 9 (19.32%), 6 (13.18%), 10 and 5 (7.50%), 4 (5%) and 3 (1.14%). Significant differences in quality assessment of papers done by chairs and those done by other participants/listeners are observed. Conclusion: This work should demonstrate the importance of introducing universal (uniform) scale for assessment of articles at conferences that would provide objective and relevant assessment, which has not been the practice. Results obtained using a single standardized scale can be compared to each other and thus improve the quality of the articles and the congress. Future congresses can be organized in this manner and become leading events in certain fields of medical science.

CT colonography in detection of colorectal carcinoma Background. Diagnostic methods used in screening and detecting colorectal carcinoma are digitorectal examination, faecal occult blood testing, sigmoidoscopy, DNA stool analysis, barium enema, colonoscopy, and as of recently CT colonography. The aim of this study was to establish diagnostic accuracy and comfort of CT colonography compared to colonoscopy and barium enema. Patients and methods. We included 231 patients in the prospective study. For all patients CT colonography and barium enema followed by colonoscopy were performed. After the procedures a comfort assessment was done in all patients. Diagnostic positive results were verified by the pato-histological examination. Sensitivity, specificity, positive predicative value (PPV) and negative predicative value (NPV) were calculated for each procedure. Results. With CT colonography, barium enema and colonoscopy 95 lesions were found, 56 (59%) of them were tumours and 39 (41%) were polyps. Among polyps pato-histology revealed 34 adenomas, 3 tubulovillous adenomas and 2 lipomas, among tumours there were 55 adenocarcinomas and 1 lymphoma. Results showed CT colonography sensitivity to polyps to be 89.7%, barium enema 48.7%, and colonoscopy 94.9%. Sensitivity to tumours of CT colonography and colonoscopy was 100% and of barium enema 94.6%. Specificities and PPV were 100% in all procedures. The comfort assessment showed CT colonography as the far most comfortable out of three procedures.