Microsurgical removal of spinal cord lipoma in Baskent University Hospital Istanbul

About the department

The Department of Adult and Pediatric Orthopedics, Traumatology, Spinal Surgery and Hand Surgery at the Baskent University Hospital Istanbul provides the full range of medical services in its areas of expertise. The department carries out high-precision diagnostics of musculoskeletal diseases, conservative and surgical treatment of orthopedic pathologies and injuries of any severity. The department's doctors provide treatment not only for adults, but also for children under the age of 16 years. The main focus is on arthroscopic interventions on the hip, knee, shoulder, elbow and ankle joints, the surgical treatment of spinal diseases and injuries, as well as on the treatment of sports injuries. The clinical practice involves the use of only the most effective therapeutic methods available in modern medicine. The goal of the department's doctors is to eliminate pain as soon as possible and restore patient's mobility. The department is headed by Prof. Dr. med. Ismet Teoman Benli.

One of the department's primary clinical focuses is arthroscopic surgery on large joints – hip, knee, shoulder, elbow and ankle. An arthroscopic intervention allows performing surgical manipulations on the joint without dissecting it, which greatly facilitates the recovery process after surgery and minimizes the risk of postoperative complications. The department uses arthroscopy for both diagnostic and therapeutic purposes. When performing the operation, the surgeon uses a special instrument, namely an arthroscope, which is inserted into the joint cavity through a small incision (0.5 cm). The arthroscope is also equipped with a miniature camera that transmits an image of the intra-articular space of the joint to a large screen. This allows the specialist to clearly see the smallest anatomical structures of the intra-articular cavity, which excludes damage to healthy tissues. The surgeon injects a special saline solution into the joint cavity, which improves the visibility of the operating field. The arthroscopic interventions are quite often performed on an outpatient basis and do not require patient hospitalization. For pain relief, both regional and general anesthesia can be used. Arthroscopy is indicated for patients with injuries of the meniscus, joint ligaments, cartilage tissues, dislocations, intra-articular fractures, rotator cuff tear, etc. The department's orthopedic surgeons have rich and successful experience in the field of such interventions, and therefore they guarantee a high-quality result.

Spinal surgery is also one of the most important areas of work of the department's medical team. In most cases, the surgeons use sparing minimally invasive interventions that contribute to minimal pain after surgery and ensure rapid postoperative recovery of the patient. When performing spinal operations, the department's surgeons use various computer-assisted monitoring systems that exclude injury to the functionally important areas of the spine. The department's specialists most often perform interventions to correct scoliosis, kyphosis, spondylolisthesis, as well as surgery to treat degenerative changes in the spine, spinal fractures, including osteoporotic ones, infectious lesions, spinal tumors, etc. The operations are performed by specially trained spinal surgeons who have vast clinical experience and successfully cope with even the most difficult cases.

Quite often, a team of orthopedic surgeons treats patients with various shoulder and elbow pathologies, including shoulder, scapular and clavicle fractures, elbow fractures and dislocations, impingement syndromes, rotator cuff tear, post-traumatic stiffness, tennis elbow, golfer's elbow, frozen shoulder. Initially, the department's doctors try to solve the problem conservatively, but if such treatment does not work, the only treatment method for the patient is surgery. Most surgical interventions on the shoulder and elbow are performed using a minimally invasive arthroscopic technique. The specialists resort to open surgery very rarely.

The department's medical team also takes care of the health of the musculoskeletal system in children. The doctors have excellent qualifications in the treatment of hip dysplasia, myelomeningocele, congenital malformations, fractures, flat feet, as well as bone, muscle and soft tissue tumors. When planning the treatment of a child with an orthopedic disease, the specialists always take into account his age and peculiar features of the growing organism.

The main clinical activities of the department include:

• Arthroscopic interventions on the hip, knee, shoulder, elbow and ankle for diagnostic and therapeutic purposes
  • Meniscal injuries
  • Ligament injuries
  • Cartilage damage
  • Dislocations
  • Intra-articular fractures
  • Rotator cuff tear
  • Articular lip damage
  • Free bodies in the articular cavity
• Spinal surgery
  • Scoliosis
  • Kyphosis, including Scheuermann's kyphosis
  • Spondylolisthesis
  • Degenerative changes in the spine
  • Ankylosing spondylitis
  • Spinal fractures, including osteoporotic ones
  • Vertebral fractures and dislocations
  • Infectious spinal diseases 
  • Spinal tumors
• Shoulder and elbow surgery
  • Rotator cuff tear
  • Subacromial impingement syndrome
  • Shoulder instability
  • Humerus, scapular and clavicle fractures
  • Elbow fractures and dislocations
  • Post-traumatic stiffness
  • Tennis elbow
  • Golfer's elbow
  • Frozen shoulder
• Hand surgery
  • Carpal tunnel syndrome
  • Trigger fingers
  • De Quervain syndrome
  • Ganglion
  • Dupuytren's contracture
• Pediatric orthopedics and traumatology
  • Hip dysplasia
  • Lesions of the musculoskeletal system in infantile cerebral palsy
  • Myelomeningocele
  • Congenital malformations of the musculoskeletal system
  • Bone fractures and sports injuries
  • Flat feet
  • Bone, muscle and soft tissue tumors
• Other medical services