When I was starting out in my surgical training I was a senior house officer at Queens Medical Centre in Nottingham with an amazing guy called Iain McVicar who I still consider a friend to this day.
As I was proceeding through the basics of oral surgery, Iain explained to me that he felt that if you were able to provide an apicectomy procedure well for patients then you could do anything in surgery. This came from a man who was routinely carrying out huge head and neck cancer and trauma operations for patients.
Iain’s rationale was that an apicectomy procedure encompasses all aspects of surgery including hard tissue, soft tissue and patient management. If you can put all of these 3 together with an eye for detail and a passion for doing things properly then you can achieve excellent results in all areas of your surgery.
I was privileged enough last year to watch Thomas Von Arx in Switzerland lecture on his provision of apicectomies and saw that it is, infact, a discipline that can be taken to a extremely high level.
If you find yourself beginning your career in implant surgery and are keen to practice your skills wherever possible then apicectomy procedures are an excellent way to practice all the skills required to be a great surgeon.
Leave a comment