What Is Pediatric Surgery?
Pediatric surgery is a specialized medical field focused on helping young patients who require surgery. The patients include infants, children, and adolescents, meaning that pediatric surgeons are responsible for all types of different patients, even those who aren’t fully developed yet.
Like general surgery, pediatric surgery can be elective, minor, required, major, or urgent (and often life-saving). This wide range of potential issues and their severity means pediatric surgeons have to have an extensive knowledge of all different parts of the body at different stages of development in order to help their patients. Some of the most common pediatric surgeries include:
- Placement of ear tubes
- Skin lesion removal
- Biopsies of growths
- Bone fracture correction
- Hernia repairs
- Removal of brain tumors and other cancerous growths
- Appendectomies
- Treatment of injuries sustained from major blunt trauma
- Correction of spinal issues and abnormalities, like spinal fusions
- Fixing congenital issues, like congenital heart disease, malformed hearts, kidneys, lungs, intestines, and more
While most children in developed countries have access to the pediatric surgeries they require, that’s not the case for everyone. In fact, there are around 1.7 billion children and adolescents worldwide who do not have access to the surgical care they require. This can cause these children to live with their issues their entire life, lead to the development of new health concerns, and even result in them dying.
The Palestine Children’s Relief Fund (PCRF) continues to provide humanitarian aid to children and their families through our hospitals, pediatric medical programs, health initiatives, hospital infrastructure projects, orphan and refugee sponsorships, and medical missions. These efforts help to ensure that children in need get the vital assistance they require.
We currently have many different departments and missions focused on providing pediatric care to the children who need it most. This includes our Pediatric Cardiac Surgery Program in Gaza which helps save the lives of children with congenital heart disease.
PCRF is not a political or religious organization. Our mission is to provide medical and humanitarian relief collectively and individually to Arab children throughout the Middle East, regardless of their nationality, politics, or religion. We rely on charitable giving to provide medical treatment, surgeries, safety, shelter, and support to children and their families in Palestine and the Levant. Find out how you can get involved and help make a difference in children’s lives today!