Recently, Yan Xingquan, a doctor from the Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, and Ren Kai, a doctor from the Department of Otorhinolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery of the First Hospital of our University, members of the 24th Batch of Chinese (Shanxi) Medical Team to Djibouti, together with local doctor Alex, successfully performed total parotidectomy with facial nerve preservation for a local male patient Hassan (alias) in the operating room of Berthe Hospital in Djibouti. This operation realized the first application of this surgical technique in Djibouti, demonstrating the excellent strength and responsibility of China's foreign medical aid.
The patient was admitted to Berthe Hospital due to the rapid enlargement of a mass on the right face for one year. After physical examination by Warsama, Director of the local Department of Otorhinolaryngology and Maxillofacial Surgery, it was found that the facial tumor of the patient was as big as a fist, with a complicated and critical condition. Further diagnosis by CT examination confirmed that the normal structure of the right parotid gland of the patient was completely invaded and replaced by the tumor, and it was closely adjacent to the large blood vessels on the deep surface of the parotid bed. The anatomical structure of the parotid gland area is precise and complex, with dense branches of the facial nerve that are extremely vulnerable to damage. Once the operation is wrong, it is very easy to cause paralysis of the patient's facial expression muscles. The core difficulty of the operation lies in the precise protection of all branches of the facial nerve and adjacent important blood vessels while completely resecting the tumor, which requires extremely high professional skills, clinical experience and operational precision of the surgeon. Faced with this complicated case that was difficult to handle locally, Warsama turned to the Chinese medical team for help at the first time and earnestly requested Yan Xingquan to be the chief surgeon.
After receiving the request, Yan Xingquan quickly took the lead in improving preoperative evaluation, refining the surgical plan and making full preoperative preparations. During the operation, Yan Xingquan was calm and precise in operation, carefully dissected and separated all branches of the facial nerve throughout the process, properly handled the posterior facial vein and branches of the external carotid artery, and carefully stripped the adhesion between the tumor and deep tissues. Finally, the tumor and the whole parotid gland lobe were completely resected, achieving the dual goals of radical tumor resection and intact preservation of facial nerve function. Postoperative pathological results confirmed that the patient suffered from parotid acinar cell carcinoma, a low-grade malignant tumor, and simple surgery could achieve a good prognosis, laying a solid foundation for the patient's recovery.
The success of the operation greatly delighted the patient and his family. Hassan and his wife expressed their gratitude excitedly: "Without the superb skills of Chinese doctors, we could only go abroad for medical treatment and bear huge medical expenses. The Chinese medical team helped us regain our health at our doorstep."
The success of this operation has filled the gap of this surgical technique in the local area, further narrowed the emotional distance between the Chinese and Djiboutian people, and enriched the connotation of health cooperation between the two countries. The 24th Batch of Chinese (Shanxi) Medical Team to Djibouti will continue to work deeply in the frontline of foreign medical aid, deepen China-Djibout health cooperation with practical actions, and contribute solid strength to building a global community of health for all.
(Pictures and texts by Yan Xingquan)
