By the end of this lesson you should be able to:
Surgery is a medical specialty that uses instruments and manual techniques to investigate or treat a biological condition of a person, such as a disease or an injury, to help improve some body functions and appearance, or repair and restructure unwanted ruptured areas.
The act of performing surgery is called a surgical procedure, operation, or surgery.
Common types of general surgeries are appendectomy, breast surgery, colon surgery, digestive tract surgery, endocrine surgery, esophageal surgery, hernia surgery, and many more.
A surgeon is a trained medical professional who performs surgery.
Surgeries are performed under anesthesia. Anesthesia is a medical treatment that keeps people from feeling pain during procedures or surgery. Depending on the surgery, different types of anesthesia are administered. For major surgeries, general anesthesia is most commonly used. General anesthesia is a state of controlled unconsciousness.
Anesthetists (Anesthesiologists) are specialist doctors responsible for providing anesthesia and pain management to patients before, during, and after operations and surgical procedures.
The operating room, sometimes called the surgery center, is where surgeries take place in hospitals.
A surgical instrument is a tool or device used for performing specific actions or carrying out desired effects during a surgical operation.
There are different types of surgeries, each determined through various categories. These categories are; the urgency of the surgery, type of procedure, body part/organ or system involved, degree of surgical invasiveness, and the instrumentation used.
The urgency of the surgery
There are 3 types of surgeries in this category:
1. Elective surgery
It is surgery done to correct or treat a non-life-threatening condition. It is done following a request by the patient and after approval by the surgeon.
2. Semi-elective surgery
This type of surgery is done to preserve a patient's life but is not needed to be done immediately.
3. Emergency surgery
Emergency surgery must be done without any delay to prevent death or serious disabilities that lead to loss of functions and body parts.
Purpose of surgery
This is a category of surgery based on the intentions of a surgical procedure. Types of surgeries in this category are:
1. Exploratory surgery
Exploratory surgery is surgery done to help or confirm a diagnosis.
2. Therapeutic surgery
Therapeutic surgery is surgery done to treat a previously diagnosed or determined condition.
3. Cosmetic surgery
Cosmetic surgery is a surgical operation done to improve the appearance of a normal functioning structure or body part.
Type of surgical procedure
This category is based on the procedure followed during the surgical procedure. The different types of surgeries in this category include:
1. Amputation
Amputation is a surgical operation that involves cutting off a body part, usually a limb. Resection is also a procedure done in amputation. Resection is the removal of all of an internal organ/body part or part of an organ that has its name or code designation.
2. Segmental resection surgery
Segmental resection surgery is done to remove part of an organ or gland. An example of segmental resection surgery is the removal of a tumor and the normal tissue around it. Excision and extirpation are procedures done in this type of surgery. Excision is cutting out or removing only a part of an organ, tissue, or other parts of the body from a human being. Extirpation is the complete excision or surgical destruction of a body part.
3. Replantation surgery
Replantation is a surgery that involves reattaching a detached body part to the body part it was attached to.
4. Reconstructive surgery
This is surgery performed to restore normal appearance and function to body parts malformed by disease or a medical condition.
5. Transplant surgery
Transplant surgery is a surgical operation performed to remove an organ from a donor and placed it in the body of a recipient, to replace a damaged or missing organ. A donor is a human whom the organ is removed from. A recipient is a human to whom the organ is transplanted.
Body parts operated on
This category of surgery is based on where surgery is performed on one organ system and is classified by the organ, organ system, or tissue involved. Examples of surgery types in this category include:
1. Cardiac surgery - Surgical operation performed on the heart.
2. Gastrointestinal surgery - Surgical operation performed on the digestive tract and its accessory organs.
3. Orthopedic surgery - Surgical operation performed on muscles and bones.
Degree of invasiveness of surgical procedures.
This category of surgical procedure is based on how invasive the procedure is on the body. Surgery types in this category are:
1. Minimally-invasive surgery
This is a type of surgical operation that makes small outer incisions to insert miniaturized instruments within a body cavity or structure. An incision is a surgical cut made in the skin or flesh.
2. Open surgical procedure
An open surgical procedure is a type of surgery where large incisions are made to access the area of interest.
Equipment used
The final category of surgical operations is based on the type of surgical instruments used for the surgery. Types of surgeries in this category are:
1. Laser surgery
Laser surgery involves the use of a laser for cutting tissue instead of a scalpel or similar surgical instruments.
2. Microsurgery
Microsurgery is a type of surgical operation that makes use of operating microscopes for the surgeon to see small structures during the operation.
3. Robotic surgery
Robotic surgery is a type of surgery where surgical robots are used to control the instrumentation under the direction of the surgeon.
Summary
We have learned that:
