The 1st Surgery Clinic of AUTh, began its operation in 1942 with the establishment of the Medical School of the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki under the direction of Professor Anastasios Misirloglou. It was initially established, together with other university clinics, in the Municipal Hospital (now Agios Dimitrios) on 20th May 1943. The initial staff of the clinic included two attendants and an assistant. It was established and operated at AHEPA Hospital in 1953, where it remained until December 2003. From January 2004 it was transferred with almost all of its medical staff to Papageorgiou Hospital.

In 1968, the first cadaveric kidney transplantation in Greece was performed in the First Surgical Clinic by Professor K. Tountas. In 1970, Professor Lazaridis performs the first transplantation from a donor father in collaboration with Professor Valtis and until his departure he performs 247 kidney transplants with results comparable to those of major centres abroad.

 

Since the era of Mr. K. Tounta, but especially after his departure in 1969 and the election of Professor D. Lazaridis to the first University Surgery, cardiac surgery is performed with increasing frequency, until 1986, when a separate Cardiac Surgery Clinic was established at the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki. . This clinic was staffed by members of the 1st Surgery Clinic and had Professor D. Lazaridis as its first director. Already since 1961, major vascular surgical procedures have been performed in the 1st Surgical Clinic. The treatment of vascular patients is systematized and expanded after 1969 with the presence of Prof. Lazaridis and then upgraded further after 1986, under the direction of Prof. Dr. Lazaridis. Professor I. Sapika. During this period, many members of the clinic are working on doctoral theses on purely vascular surgical topics, such as the surgical treatment of abdominal aortic aneurysms, portal hypertension and nephra vascular hypertension. In 1990, under the direction of Professor Dalaina, vascular surgery was recognized as a single specialty, which pushed the clinic to greater development and expansion of its activities in vascular surgery.

Throughout the operation of the Clinic, a remarkable number and quality of clinical, clinical-laboratory and purely experimental works have been carried out, which underline the international prestige of the Clinic. Since 2002, there has been a rapid development of the Clinic in minimally invasive surgery in terms of General Surgery and Vascular Surgery. In 2005, the first successful at a national level hybrid thoraco-abdominal aneurysm repair was performed. The Clinic pioneers again, the following year, by performing the first hybrid aortic arch aneurysm repair. Under the direction of Professor D. Kiskini, surgical achievements continued at the "new" University Hospital PAPAGEORGIOU, where there is improved infrastructure both in the experimental operating room and in the other areas of the Clinic. From September 2012 until August 2017, the Director of the Clinic was Professor Georgios Marakis. Since September 2017, Professor Vasilios Papadopoulos was elected Director of the Clinic, under whose guidance the work of the Clinic in the teaching of students of the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, as well as in the research and clinical field, continues successfully. 

A characteristic feature is the development of clinics specialising in complex surgical conditions, such as the oncology surgery clinic, the breast clinic, the endocrine glands clinic, the colorectal clinic, the vascular surgery clinic, the upper digestive and pancreatic clinic and the liver and biliary surgery clinic. These outpatient clinics are staffed by physicians with expertise and many years of practical experience. With the combination of clinical work, recognized research activity at national and international level and dedication to Medical Education, the Aˊ Surgery Clinic, AUTh is a worthy continuation of one of the most historic surgical clinics in Greece, as well as a driving force for academic surgery in Greece.

The A' Surgical Clinic of the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki is located on the 4th floor of the Papageorgiou Hospital building and has a capacity of 45 beds. The scientific staff of the clinic consists of. Professor, 1 Assistant Professor, 2 academic fellows, and 2 medical residents. Since September 2017, the Director of the Clinic is Professor of Surgery Vasilios N. Papadopoulos.

In the field of vascular surgery, the intra-arterial repair of abdominal and thoracic aortic aneurysms and stenoses of both carotid and peripheral aortic vessels is applied.

In the field of general surgery, classical surgery, surgical oncology, vascular-oncological surgery and laparoscopic surgery are performed across the entire spectrum. Particular emphasis is placed (and with the existence of the corresponding outpatient clinics of the hospital) on the treatment of a) breast diseases, b) endocrine gland diseases, c) colon and rectal diseases and d) the multidisciplinary, complete and specialized treatment of primary and metastatic liver tumors.

The combination of general surgery and vascular surgery allows the treatment of complex oncological cases, for which the Clinic is a reference centre in Northern Greece. At the same time, the clinic continues to be at the forefront of university research with projects such as 3D-printing of organs, which is part of a research protocol in collaboration with the Papageorgiou Hospital and the Department of Surveying, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, as well as research collaborations with the University of Berlin (Germany), Bern (Switzerland) and Boston (USA).

Clinical work

 

The clinical work of the 1st University Surgery Clinic includes:

1. Regular surgeries in five rooms per week, in which the full range of surgical - vascular surgery is performed.
2. Day - surgery every Wednesday in the operating theatres of the short-stay clinic, where the needs of oncological patients are also covered with the placement of subcutaneous chemotherapy channels (in fuse a port)

 

III. Septic surgery every Thursday in the minor surgery rooms in the Department of Regular Outpatient Surgery.

 

 

The clinic follows the latest trends and applies new surgical techniques.

a. In the field of vascular surgery, the intra-arterial repair of abdominal and thoracic aortic aneurysms and stenoses of both carotid and peripheral aortic vessels is applied.

b. In the field of general surgery, classical surgery, surgical oncology, vascular-oncological surgery and laparoscopic surgery are performed in the whole spectrum.

 

 

 

DAILY SCHEDULE OF CLINIC OPERATIONS

 

 

	MONDAY	TUESDAY	WEDNESDAY	THURSDAY	FRIDAY
GENERAL SURGERY OPERATIONS
VASCULAR OPERATIONS		(Local)
SHORT-STAY HOSPITALIZATION			(General Surgery)
SEPTIC OUTPATIENT CLINIC

 

 

In addition, the Clinic is responsible for the operation of numerous general and special morning outpatient clinics, which accept patients by appointment. These are:

 

 

	MONDAY	TUESDAY	WEDNESDAY	THURSDAY	FRIDAY
GENERAL SURGERY	08:30-12:00		10:30-14:00		08:30-14:00
INTESTINAL AND ANAL FLAP				08:30-12:30
BREAST					09:00-11:00
ENDOCRINE GLANDS					09:00-11:00
SURGICAL ONCOLOGY					10:30-12:30
VASCULAR SURGERY		08:30-14:00		08:30-14:00
LIVER			08:30-10:30
PANGREAS	12:00-14:00

 

 

The First University Surgery Clinic participates in the hospital's cyclical program of general on-call and morning coverage. Its vascular surgery department is responsible for the treatment of specialty-related cases during all general on-call hours of the hospital, but also on a daily basis in the form of in-house coverage for patients admitted to the hospital.

 

 

Educational work

 

More than 200 medical students per year are trained in our clinic in the compulsory course of General Surgery, in the 6th, 7th and 1st semesters. The 1st University Surgery Clinic is responsible for the delivery and examination of the selected courses:

 

    of Surgical Oncology and

    of Vascular Surgery to the students of the first semester

 

    The training of residents includes theoretical training through weekly meetings and clinic classes and daily discussion of cases, as well as participation - under supervision - in a range of procedures, as well as in the operation of emergency department and regular outpatient clinics.

Extremely important was also until recently, the experience gained by the resident doctors in the treatment of critically ill patients in the Intensive Care Unit at AHEPA hospital. For this reason, there has already been cooperation with the director of the ICU of Papageorgiou Hospital for the periodic training of the clinic's residents in the Intensive Care Unit of the hospital.

The 1st University Surgery Clinic is responsible for the organization of Postgraduate Courses in General Surgery and Vascular Surgery which are held in the classrooms and the auditorium of Papageorgiou Hospital on a weekly basis with the presence of colleagues of other specialties, as well as in the hall of the Medical Association of Thessaloniki under the auspices of the Surgical Society of Northern Greece.

Finally, the clinic has undertaken the organization of Greek and international conferences, including XXVIII European Federation Congress of "The International College of Surgeons: Surgical Challenges During a Time of Crisis which took place 3-5 April 2014, in Thessaloniki.

 

Ongoing Research Innovation and Pioneering Clinical Innovation

The combination of general surgery and vascular surgery allows the treatment of complex oncological cases, for which the Clinic is a reference centre in Northern Greece. At the same time, the clinic continues to be at the forefront of university research with projects such as 3D-printing of organs, which is part of a research protocol in collaboration with the Papageorgiou Hospital and the Department of Surveying and Surveying, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, as well as research collaborations with the University of Berlin (Germany), Bern (Switzerland) and Boston (USA). The pioneering project entitled "3D modelling of human internal body organs for surgical purposes" was proposed for funding under the Operational Programme "Competitiveness, Entrepreneurship and Innovation" (EPANEK) , 2014-2020, Intervention II, cycle A of the Action "RESEARCH-CREATE-INNOVATE" and was included in the List of Potential Beneficiaries. This is an innovation of an interdisciplinary nature. The aim of the project is to use digitisation, modelling and 3D reproduction techniques for liver models of patients suffering from various diseases (tumours, cirrhosis, etc.) using a common 3D printer and digital image processing techniques.

 

As part of the research activities of the project, patients who will be admitted with a diagnosed liver tumour to the Papageorgiou General Hospital in Thessaloniki will participate in a pilot project. The method will initially be applied in liver and biliary surgery, with the prospect of extending it to other surgical procedures. The value of 3D printing is enormous, as it can provide surgeons with a "navigation map" of where the tumour is located, especially in relation to the surrounding anatomical structures such as blood vessels, bile ducts, etc. With the ability to accurately visualise the tumour preoperatively, the surgical team is allowed to plan and even simulate the surgery. This provides increased patient safety as it can lead to reduced blood loss and protection of vital structures.

In addition, it allows for a better overall assessment of the patient. Errors due to the human factor will be avoided, as better pre-operative planning of the operation (resection strategy and tumour approach) will be done in collaboration with other specialties, such as anaesthesiologists, hepatologists, etc. The aim is, upon completion of the research project, to apply the method at Papageorgiou General Hospital to the patients deemed necessary. The General Hospital and in particular the radiology department will acquire a functional system for the production of 3D models of internal organs (not only liver), with the aim of facilitating a multitude of therapeutic procedures based on early diagnosis through tomographic imaging. It will also provide better information to the patient, his/her environment and the patient's family.

The result of the clinical, research and educational work of the Clinic is reflected in distinctions at both Greek and international level. Recently, the Director of the Clinic, Professor Vasilios N. Papadopoulos and other members of the Clinic were awarded by the Dean's Office of the Faculty of Health Sciences of the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, both for their research work and for their international recognition.