the davinci of surgery

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Artist, dentist, sculptor and internationally-known surgeon: all these titles belong to one man, Prof. Stephen A. Schendel, who recently visited Rambam. There, he performed innovative operations and gave lessons in the art of medicine

Writer: Roberta Neiger, ProText

During the beginning of March, Rambam surgeons conducted two complicated operations that included maxillofacial and plastic surgery. Such treatments are usually divided over several operations, performed by different specialists. Apparently, things can be done differently. Within a few hours, these operations – in all their complexity – were completed by one person. This surgeon, Prof. Stephen A. Schendel from Stanford University, is a world-renowned expert who holds two medical titles and specializations in a good number of other areas. Prof. Schendel, a doctor (MD) and dentist (DDS), is an expert in maxillofacial and plastic surgery, known widely for his work correcting congenital facial deformities. Creating is a genuine passion for Prof. Schendel. In addition to his medical activities, his drawings and sculptures have earned worldwide acclaim. Last month, the doctor/artist arrived at Rambam to take part in activities aimed to raise awareness of the advantages of combining orthodontic treatment with maxillofacial and plastic surgery.

Prof. Schendel’s visit reached its high point when he performed, along with doctors from different departments, two complicated operations at Rambam. The first surgery was done on a seven-year old boy, who suffers from Treacher Collins Sydrome, which was manifested in a cleft palate and deformities of the upper and lower jaw. “Patients with this syndrome also have deformities of the eyes and eyelids,” says Director of the Dept. of Orthodontic and Craniopfacial Anomalies, Dr. Dror Aizenbud, who accompanied Prof. Schendel during his stay. “These cases are very complicated, and their treatment generally requires a number of operations, conducted by surgeons in different fields. “

In contrast, Prof. Schendel holds that all problems should be addressed in one procedure if possible. In a single five-hour operation, Prof. Schendel corrected all the little boy’s facial defects. To reconstruct the jaw, he used bone taken from the patient’s hip.

Shortly after that procedure, Prof. Schendel operated on an 18-year old woman who had undergone a series of operations to correct a serious jaw deformity. In spite of the procedures, the young woman’s nose was still deformed. During a delicate four-hour operation, Prof. Schendel ‘built’ a new nose using cartilage taken from the patient’s ear. This was an especially creative solution, according to Dr. Aizenbud , who explained that while cartilage is usually taken from the nasal septum, this patient laced that partition between the nose’s left and right cavities.

Prof. Schendel spent the remainder of his time at Rambam lecturing to medical professionals in his fields of specialization. He also delivered the key lecture at a conference on medicine and dentistry "Orthodontic & Craniofacial Aspects" at Rambam, attended by 150 doctors.

“Prof. Schendel is amazingly creative,” says Dr. Aizenbud, who travels yearly to Prof. Schendel for research and clinical collaboration, and “has long dreamed of bringing him to Rambam, where he can teach his innovative approaches to the staff”. Quick learners, Rambam’s surgeons have already entered Prof. Schendel’s new techniques into their operating rooms.