Specialized Surgeries

Cardiovascular Surgery

With that name is defined a surgery on the heart. It is done to treat complications like coronary artery bypass grafting, correct some congenital heart disease, or treat valvular heart disease created by various causes including endocarditis. It also includes heart transplantation (this one is rarely used. Only in special cases). This procedure has reduced the mortality rates to low levels. There are different kinds of cardiac procedures like the Closed Heart Surgery with consist in a small incision ir order to not open the chest cavity. It´s been used by cardiologists to introduce stent or just repair arteries around the heart area. The Operations Under Hypothermia which means that the heart should be stopped and drained of blood. In the Open Heart Surgery the patient's chest is opened and surgery is performed on the heart. The heart may or may not be opened depending on the particular type of desease. The Modern beating-heart surgery is also known as the "off-pump bypass surgery" - coronary artery bypass surgery without the aforementioned cardiopulmonary bypass. In these operations, the heart is beating during surgery. Finally the Minimally invasive surgery is defined as a new procedure that has grown in popularity is robot-assisted heart surgery. Is also known as artificial surgery because a machine is used to perform surgery while being controlled by the surgeon. The main advantage to this is the size of the incision made in the patient which does not have to be bigger than 3 small holes for the robot's much smaller hands to get through. A major advantage is the recovery time of a patient,which is reduced in a matter of days.

Brain Surgery (Neurosurgery)

Neurosurgery is a process focused on treating those central, peripheral nervous system and spinal column diseases amenable to surgical intervention. Its very dangerous, there are so many riks for the patient. An operation can cause paralisys, brain damage, psycosis and death. In the last years this kind of medical procedure have benefited greatly from advances in computer assistence. Worldwide there are little percentage of neuro-specialists. In Costa Rica there are a few but excellent doctors.

Maxillofacial Surgery

Maxillofacial surgery is a procedure qualified under the destistry area but it cannot be done by a regular dentist. This person should be also a general doctor with also a surgery specialty. It includes diagnosis, surgical and related treatment of diseases, injuries and defects involving both the functional and esthetic aspects of the hard and soft tissues of the head, mouth, teeth, gums, jaws, neck and associate estructures. It is also known as Oral Surgery. Treatments include:

• Dentoalveolar surgery to remove impacted teeth, difficult tooth extractions with enphasis on medically compromised patients, bone grafting and other dental prostheses.
• Diagnosis and treatment of benign pathology (cysts, tumors etc.)
• Diagnosis and treatment of malignant pathology (oral & head and neck cancer).
• Diagnosis and treatment of skin cancer and lip reconstruction
• Diagnosis and treatment of congenital malformations as cleft lip and palate and cranial vault malformations such as craniosynostosis.
• Treatment of chronic facial pain disorders
• Treatment of temporomandibular joint disorders
• Diagnosis and treatment of dysgnathia,reconstructive surgery, orthognathic surgery, maxillomandibular advancement, surgical correction of asymmetry.
• Diagnosis of soft and hard tissue trauma of the oral and maxillofacial region like jaw, cheek bone, nasal, skull ,eye socket fractures, among others.
• Splint and surgical treatment of sleep apnea, maxillomandibular advancement, genioplasty.
• Surgery to insert dental implants and Maxillofacial implants for attaching craniofacial prostheses and bone anchored hearing aids.
• Cosmetic surgery limited to the head and neck.