50 Years of Innovation in Surgery
Paul T Sergeant
MD PhD Prof em, MyVirtualSurgery, MyCVsurgery, semi-automated digital learning, digital health engagement
What is your PROLENE Story?
My first confrontation with #PROLENE was in August 1970, one year after its launch. I was in Aarhus Denmark as a fourth-year medical student attending a Medical Summer school. I was allowed to enter an operating theatre and assist Prof Niels Christian Pedersen, Chair of Plastic Surgery of Commune Hospital, with the reconstruction of an eyelid. The patient was a burn patient in his n-th reconstructive surgery. His eyes dehydrated because his eyelids had burned away, and he could not close his eyes.
Prof NC Pedersen had been trained by Sir Harold Gillies in the UK during the second world war. This institute was world famous for treating the burned pilots from the Battle of Britain. NC had become a brilliant surgeon and a great man. He used a Gillies needle holder (that I remember well but also PROLENE) I could hardly see the suture.
The result was as expected, the patient was very happy indeed. This procedure blew me away and distilled my motivation to become a surgeon. Difficult to imagine that a small operation with a minuscule needle and thread could have such a quality-of-life changing impact.
Since I became a cardiac surgeon, It is hard to imagine how far cardiovascular surgery has come. I am excited to see the future innovations in cardiac surgery that will continue to restore patients lives.
#myprolenestory #prolene50 #patientsarewaiting
Accelerating innovation for better health through Growth, Strategy and Design
5 年Thanks for sharing Prof. Paul T Sergeant. It's incredible to think about the progress that has been made in safety and effectiveness of surgery in the last 50 years. Excited to see what the next 50 years of surgery will look like!?