 |
| Dr.
Charanjeet Singh (orthopaedic surgeon) and Dr.
Paul Selvindoss (colorectal & laparoscopic surgeon) |
What to know before going under the knife
A surgical guide
Surgery
is scary. There is no denying it. With every surgery comes a certain
amount of risk. On top of the pain, there is the worry that accompanies
going under the knife, the cost, and significant recovery time. In the
face of this worry, modern medicine is evolving at rapid rates and
changing the way we look at surgery. Some of these worries are beginning
to look like worries of the past.
Medical procedures
can be categorised into two groups: surgical or non-surgical.
Non-surgical procedures are considered so because they do not break the
skin – i.e. diagnostic physical exams, imaging studies. Surgical
procedures involve breaking the skin to get to the root of the problem.
Sometimes, surgical procedures are optional – not
entirely necessary, but a way to nip a problem in the bud. However, in
many cases, surgical procedures are a last resort and can mean the
difference between life and death. Even if you cannot avoid the surgery
altogether, there are steps you can take to give yourself the best
chance of a speedy, complication-free recovery.
Rest up, best up
Health
professionals advise that patients be in as healthy a state of mind and
body as possible. It’s essential to the success of the surgery and the
recovery process. The healing process after a surgery takes a lot out of
a person. For best results, prepare adequately and get enough rest.
No food, dude
A
general rule of thumb is to refrain from eating or drinking anything
eight hours before your surgery. This is to prevent an aspiration, when
the contents from the stomach spill over into the lungs, from occurring
and causing significant damage.
Make your allergies known
It’s
important that you share any allergies you may have with your doctors.
Not only do they need to know what you are allergic to, but they also
must be informed about the way you react to said allergens. This way,
they can take precautionary measures to keep you safe during the
surgery.
Know your options
Nowadays, there are
two kinds of surgery available for most procedures. There’s traditional
open surgery as well as minimally invasive surgery (MIS). MIS has been
available for and perfected over the last few decades. It involves the
use of specialised instruments and trocars (or cannulas) that act as
protective doorways that allow surgeons access to the abdominal or
pleural cavities while also protecting the tissue.
Plan your recovery
Make
sure you take enough time off work to ensure you don’t have to rush
through your recovery. If going through open surgery, be prepared to set
aside 6-8 weeks for your recovery. MIS procedures boast a much faster
recovery time because of the smaller incisions required – you can expect
to be back on your feet and to normal activity within the week of your
surgery.
Weigh the cost
Surgical procedures are
not cheap, but there’s more than just the cost of the surgery to take
into consideration. Open surgery may look more affordable than MIS if
you look at the cost of the procedure alone, but if you factor in
hospital stay, potential complications, and the opportunity cost of
taking time off work – most people find that MIS is a more cost
effective method of having surgery.
 |
| Dr.
Charanjeet Singh (orthopaedic surgeon) |
Gleneagles Kuala
Lumpur is on a mission to pull back the curtain that shrouds surgery. By
equipping patients with the knowledge they need to prepare for and
choose their surgical procedure, the hope is that fewer people fear
surgery and more begin to look to it as a practical solution rather than
a last resort.
Some of the common procedures that can be
executed via MIS are endoscopies, laparoscopies (around the abdomen and
pelvis), and arthroscopies (around bones and joints).
 |
| Common procedures that can be
executed via MIS are endoscopies, laparoscopies (around the abdomen and
pelvis), and arthroscopies (around bones and joints). |
Dr.
Paul Selvindoss (colorectal & laparoscopic surgeon) and Dr.
Charanjeet Singh (orthopaedic surgeon), both stationed at Gleneagles
Kuala Lumpur, are a couple of the most talented practitioners of MIS in
Malaysia. During an intimate session with the media, these MIS
professionals shared their personal takes on MIS.
“It’s all worth it for the comfort of
our patients. MIS patients enjoy quicker healing times and have much
smaller scars. Of course, it’s not always an option – it is only
appropriate for certain procedures, but we do encourage our patients to
consider it because of the significant benefits,” added Dr. Charanjeet.
 |
| Dr. Adzuan Rahman, CEO of Gleneagles Kuala Lumpur giving his welcome speech |
Minimally
invasive surgery is still a developing practise. As technology
improves, the instruments are becoming more versatile and dexterous.
Surgeons are becoming more skilled as the training methods advance. All
these factors point to MIS becoming the new default surgical option
where possible.
To give
the public the
behind the scenes look of MIS, Gleneagles Kuala Lumpur is
currently hosting an exhibition on MIS to raise awareness about the
procedure. Even though it has been available in Malaysia for around 30
years, it is still not widely discussed as an option.
 |
| “There’s
a lot of training and specialised practice that goes into preparing for
minimally invasive surgery. It’s very different from open surgery. Our
view of the area we’re operating on is only available via the inserted
scope and our access is limited by the tools and small incisions,” Dr.
Paul explained. |
Check out Gleneagles Kuala Lumpur’s MIS exhibition “Less Pain, More Gains” at Lobby B of Gleneagles Hospital. Find out more about the history of surgery and try your hand at MIS.
For more information, check out their website at http://gleneagleskl.com.my/ and
Facebook https://www.facebook.com/gleneagleskualalumpur/.
