Mending a World of Problems: 12-Year Review of Medical Tourism Inbound Complications in a Tertiary Centre

IF 2.8 3区医学 Q2 SURGERY Aesthetic Plastic Surgery Pub Date : 2025-01-27 DOI:10.1007/s00266-024-04523-y

Yoav Yechezkel Pikkel, Hadar Eliad, Hagit Ofir, Mahmud Zeidan, Liron Eldor, Haya Nakhleh, Yitzchak Ramon, Assaf Aviram Zeltzer

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Abstract

Background

Medical tourism is a rapidly expanding multi-billion-dollar industry. Reduced costs, all-inclusive vacation packages that include cosmetic surgery, globalization, and affordable flight expenses have encouraged patients to seek aesthetic procedures in different countries. Cosmetic medical tourism is associated with high complication rates, such as severe infections, wound dehiscence, pain or discomfort, aesthetic dissatisfaction, and even death.

Patients and Methods

A twelve-year survey of medical records was conducted using ADAMS healthcare database software. Data regarding patient demographics, the country of the original procedure, the operation type, complications, and subsequent treatment were recorded.

Results

Fifty-six patients have been admitted to the Department of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery. The youngest patient was 18, and the oldest was 65, with an average age of 37.46. The majority were females (n = 51, 91.07%). The most common procedure was liposuction (n = 40), followed by abdominoplasty (38). Only eleven patients had a single procedure while travelling; on average, they had 2.34 procedures in a single trip. Patients presented with an average POD of 30.9. The most common complaint was dehiscence at the surgical site. Eleven patients required re-operation. The average hospitalization length in the Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery Department was 4.4 days.

Conclusions

Medical tourism has a positive impact on patients and caregivers alike. However, the combination of multiple procedures in a short time, relatively short follow-up, different microbial environments, and more led to substantial complications, which had a devastating effect on many patients.

Level of Evidence III

This journal requires that authors assign a level of evidence to each article. For a full description of these Evidence-Based Medicine ratings, please refer to the Table of Contents or the online Instructions to Authors www.springer.com/00266.

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解决一系列问题：某高等医疗中心入境医疗旅游并发症的12年回顾。

背景：医疗旅游是一个迅速发展的数十亿美元的产业。成本降低、包括整容手术在内的全包度假套餐、全球化和可负担的机票费用，促使患者在不同的国家寻求美容手术。美容医疗旅游伴随着高并发症率，如严重感染、伤口裂开、疼痛或不适、审美不满，甚至死亡。患者和方法：采用ADAMS医疗数据库软件对12年的医疗记录进行调查。记录了患者人口统计学、原手术国家、手术类型、并发症和后续治疗等数据。结果：56例患者入住整形重建外科。患者年龄最小18岁，最大65岁，平均年龄37.46岁。以女性居多（n = 51, 91.07%）。最常见的手术是抽脂（40例），其次是腹部成形术（38例）。只有11名患者在旅行中进行了一次手术；平均而言，他们在一次旅行中进行了2.34次手术。患者的平均POD为30.9。最常见的主诉是手术部位裂开。11例患者需要再次手术。整形重建外科平均住院时间为4.4天。结论：医疗旅游对患者和护理人员都有积极的影响。然而，多种手术在短时间内联合，随访时间相对较短，微生物环境不同，更导致大量并发症，对许多患者造成了毁灭性的影响。证据等级iii：本刊要求作者为每篇文章指定证据等级。有关这些循证医学评级的完整描述，请参阅目录或在线作者说明www.springer.com/00266。

本文章由计算机程序翻译，如有差异，请以英文原文为准。

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来源期刊

Aesthetic Plastic Surgery 医学-外科

CiteScore

4.40

自引率

25.00%

发文量

479

审稿时长

3 months

期刊介绍： Aesthetic Plastic Surgery is a publication of the International Society of Aesthetic Plastic Surgery and the official journal of the European Association of Societies of Aesthetic Plastic Surgery (EASAPS), Società Italiana di Chirurgia Plastica Ricostruttiva ed Estetica (SICPRE), Vereinigung der Deutschen Aesthetisch Plastischen Chirurgen (VDAPC), the Romanian Aesthetic Surgery Society (RASS), Asociación Española de Cirugía Estética Plástica (AECEP), La Sociedad Argentina de Cirugía Plástica, Estética y Reparadora (SACPER), the Rhinoplasty Society of Europe (RSE), the Iranian Society of Plastic and Aesthetic Surgeons (ISPAS), the Singapore Association of Plastic Surgeons (SAPS), the Australasian Society of Aesthetic Plastic Surgeons (ASAPS), the Egyptian Society of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgeons (ESPRS), and the Sociedad Chilena de Cirugía Plástica, Reconstructiva y Estética (SCCP). Aesthetic Plastic Surgery provides a forum for original articles advancing the art of aesthetic plastic surgery. Many describe surgical craftsmanship; others deal with complications in surgical procedures and methods by which to treat or avoid them. Coverage includes "second thoughts" on established techniques, which might be abandoned, modified, or improved. Also included are case histories; improvements in surgical instruments, pharmaceuticals, and operating room equipment; and discussions of problems such as the role of psychosocial factors in the doctor-patient and the patient-public interrelationships. Aesthetic Plastic Surgery is covered in Current Contents/Clinical Medicine, SciSearch, Research Alert, Index Medicus-Medline, and Excerpta Medica/Embase.