Attendance at conferences

Infection Clinic staff speak at the annual conference of the Estonian Society for Infection Control

On October 16, the annual conference of the Estonian Society for Infection Control “The Power of Infection Control — Impact, Lessons and Stories” was held in cooperation with Viljandi Hospital. The conference brought together more than 100 participants from various Estonian health institutions.

This year's annual conference discussed the invisible but important impact of infection control in healthcare, talked about preventing bladder catheter-related infections, and shared success stories from hospitals.

West Tallinn Central Hospital gave presentations: Dr Pille Märtin, Elika Avila and Signe Juhkam. Dr Pille Märtin, Head of the Infection Control Department, spoke about urinary tract infections associated with bladder catheters. Infection Control Nurse Elika Avila shared her experience in documenting and organising surveillance on the same topic. Signe Juhkam, Head of Nursing at the Infectious Diseases Clinic, gave an overview of the international conference ICPIC 2025.

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Doctors of West Tallinn Central Hospital presented at the BaltanestIC 2025 Congress in Lithuania

On 18–20 September, the 13th Baltic International Congress of Anaesthesiology and Intensive Care — BaltanestIC 2025 — was held in Lithuania. It is the most important professional event in the region, bringing together specialists from across the Baltics and other parts of Europe.

Head of the Anaesthesiology and Intensive Care Clinic of West Tallinn Central Hospital, chief medical officer and anaesthesiologist Dr Raido Paasma. Presentation “Novel Psychotropic Substances. Trends in Estonia” focused on modern psychotropic substances, primarily nitazenes.

“Every year, tens or even hundreds of new substances — cannabinoids, opioids, stimulants and depressants — are synthesised to meet market demand and generate illegal income,” Dr Paasma noted, adding: “In recent years, nitazenes have accounted for the leading proportion of drug-related deaths in Estonia, representing approximately 50% of fatalities. The medical profession lacks knowledge on dealing with overdoses from these new substances, particularly nitazenes. My presentation sought to address this knowledge gap and provide practical recommendations on patient management.”

Anaesthesiologist and pain specialist from the Pain Management Department of West Tallinn Central Hospital, Dr Sergei Gordienko-Tarvis, also spoke at the congress with the presentation “Chronic post-surgical pain”, in which he outlined the possibilities for managing chronic postoperative pain, the latest research directions in the field, and diagnostic and preventive methods.

“This is a common issue that can significantly affect patients’ quality of life. Despite the relevance of the topic, it became clear during preparation that little is known about the practical aspects of treating this type of pain. My goal was to raise awareness and demonstrate how surgical patient management can be optimised from a pain management perspective,” explained Dr Gordienko-Tarvis.

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Modern diagnostics of prostate cancer

West Tallinn Central Hospital uses the modern magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) targeted biopsy method in the diagnosis of prostate cancer, in cooperation with radiologists specialising in urological diseases.

‍Research results and practical experience in applying this method were presented by our doctors at the Baltic Congress of the European Association of Urologists (EAU Baltic Meeting 2025), which took place on 30–31 May in Vilnius.

The MRI-targeted biopsy method enables a tissue sample to be taken directly from a suspicious area during an MRI examination, increasing accuracy and making it possible to detect a tumour even in complex cases. This method is particularly valuable when, for example, the tumour margin is small or located in a way that makes it difficult to detect by ultrasound examination.

“Not every form of prostate cancer requires immediate treatment. It is important to diagnose a clinically significant form of cancer in a timely manner, followed by determining the stage of the disease and making the correct treatment decision. An MRI scan and an MRI-targeted prostate biopsy play a crucial role here,” explains Dr Dmitri Korotõtš, senior urologist at the Urology Centre of West Tallinn Central Hospital.