Surgery is the medical specialty that deals with the surgical treatment of surgical diseases, injuries, the consequences of injuries and malformations. Surgical therapy is understood to mean treatment by means of an invasive procedure, i.e. an operation.
In surgery, for example, diseased organs are completely or partially removed, injured body parts are stitched back together, blocked organ systems are made permeable again and new organs or prostheses are implanted. Specialists in surgery perform these operations using either minimally invasive or open surgical procedures.
From the broad field of surgery, several sub-disciplines have specialized in cardiac surgery, vascular surgery, thoracic surgery, visceral surgery, bariatric surgery, pancreatic surgery, liver surgery, endocrine surgery, oncological surgery, paediatric surgery, neurosurgery and plastic and aesthetic surgery.
Experts in cardiac surgery perform surgical procedures on the heart and the vessels close to the heart. These include bypass surgery, heart transplantation, pacemaker implantation, heart valve reconstriction and rhythm surgery. The aim of heart surgery is to treat congenital or acquired heart defects such as heart valve, pericardial or myocardial diseases. Heart surgery can be performed on either an open or closed heart.
Vascular surgery experts deal with the surgical treatment of vascular diseases, i.e. diseases of the veins and arteries, and their consequential damage. For example, peripheral arterial occlusive disease, varicose veins, aneurysms, vascular stenoses and circulatory disorders are among the conditions that are often treated by a vascular surgeon, officially known as a specialist in vascular surgery. In addition to endovascular and surgical treatment methods, vascular surgery also uses conservative treatment with medication.
Operations on the chest (thorax), lungs, bronchial tubes, trachea as well as the diaphragm, pleura and diaphragm are performed as part of thoracic surgery. For example, thoracic surgery experts perform operations to treat lung cancer or pleural diseases as well as pneumothorax or funnel chest. Thoracic surgery procedures can be performed either by opening the chest (thoracotomy) or minimally invasively using thoracoscopy.
The range of services offered by visceral surgery experts includes operations on the organs of the abdominal cavity, i.e. the stomach, intestines, liver, spleen and gallbladder. Visceral surgery also includes surgical treatment of the pancreas, oesophagus, thyroid gland and parathyroid gland.
Experts in plastic and aesthetic surgery perform shape-changing and restorative procedures on organs and tissue parts as well as on the surface of the skin. The aim is to restore or improve disturbed body shapes and functions. The range of plastic and aesthetic surgery services includes facelifts, rhinoplasty, liposuction, breast augmentation and ear correction.
Neurosurgery experts are specialists in the surgical treatment of diseases of the brain, spinal cord, spinal column and nerves. These include craniocerebral injuries, brain tumors, strokes and herniated discs. The range of services offered by neurosurgery therefore includes spinal surgery and intracranial surgery (brain surgery) in particular.
The surgical treatment of diseases in children and adolescents such as spina bifida, hydrocephalus, Hirschsprung's disease or hernia is part of the remit of experts in pediatric surgery.
Experts in oncological surgery specialize in the surgical treatment of cancer. As such, they focus on the surgical removal of tumors of all kinds. The most common clinical pictures in oncological surgery include bowel cancer, stomach cancer, pancreatic cancer, gallbladder cancer and liver cancer.
