The Department of Reconstructive Plastic Surgery is the only one of its kind in Stockholm County, and the largest in Sweden. We specialize in surgical treatment of congenital deformities, immediate or secondary reconstruction in cancer patients, and reconstruction after various types of trauma.
Our vision: To create form and function through science and care.
Our mission: To offer high-quality reconstructive plastic surgery and effective care to our patients and to actively share knowledge about reconstructive surgery with students, referrals sources, and the public.
We can offer our patients a continuum of care with a high level of care and expertise.
Craniofacial Deformities
A craniofacial team treats children with lip, palate, and jaw defects or other uncommon facial defects. Treatment options include distraction (transplanting rib bone to the lower jaw/jaw joint, transplanting scalp bone to reconstruct the cheekbone, and surgery to adjust the jaw).
Facial Paralysis
Several different types of surgery are required to reconstruct all functions. The most advanced methods involve nerve grafts and muscle transfers to the face, in a two-step procedure. First, nerves are transplanted from the lower leg to the face, and after at least six-months, a muscle, with its nerve, is connected to the transplanted nerve. In this way the patient regains part of the muscle function in the half of the face that had been paralyzed.
Microtia
Reconstructing an external ear is a challenge in reconstructive surgery since ear cartilage is thin, soft, and complex in form. Reconstruction of the external ear can be considered only after the child has reached ten years of age. Surgery involves a two-step procedure.
Vascular Malformation
Patients (paediatric and adult) with vascular malformations comprise a group of patients with very diverse and rare conditions. A team of specialists focuses on the diagnosis, investigation, and treatment of these disorders. Treatment strategies may include surgery, laser therapy, medication, and combinations of these methods.
Breast Reconstruction – A New Breast
A new breast can be created concurrently with removal of a tumour– primary reconstruction. A special type of primary reconstruction is performed in patients at high risk for developing breast cancer later in life- prophylactic mastectomy. Secondary reconstructions are done with all available methods: prosthesis, a combination of prosthesis and the patient’s own tissues (skin/fat/muscle), or only own tissue that approximates the form and consistency of the other breast.
Gender Reassignment Surgery
The Department has offered gender reassignment or transsexual surgery for several decades. Apart from the initial major surgical procedure, we also perform several complementary operations.
Pressure Ulcers
Patients with spinal cord injury or disorders that impair mobility and sensation, e.g. multiple sclerosis, have an elevated risk to develop pressure ulcers. We operate on ulcers that do not heal within a reasonable time. Our department has collaboration with the Spinal Cord Injury Department, which provides outpatient care, and with Rehab Station Stockholm that serves patients during the important mobilization and rehabilitation phases after surgery.
Burn Care Section
Treating the Most Severely Injured
Karolinska University Hospital’s specialized Burn Centre, inaugurated in 2004, complies with high international standards for burn care. Structured collaboration between the intensive care unit and the Burn Centre aims to assure a high level of care and safety.
The surgical team comes to the patient at our centre’s well-equipped operating theatre, and patients are cared for in single rooms to minimize the risk for infection. In addition to specialized burn care, the Karolinska also offers HBO (hyperbaric oxygen) therapy and is Sweden’s only provider of ECMO (extra corporeal membrane oxygenation).
HBO reduces the risk for brain damage in burn patients suffering from severe smoke inhalation and carbon monoxide poisoning. ECMO is used to treat patients with respiratory and/or circulatory failure when traditional intensive care proves insufficient. ECMO can save the lives of severely burned patients with lung damage.
Reconstruction of Burn Injuries
After the hospitalization phase, in some cases, further operations are needed, where techniques in plastic surgery are used to restore the best possible form and function. Treatment options include skin transplantation (grafting) through skin expansion, or microsurgery.