On September 14, WANG Cheng, CPC Secretary, Legal Representative and Deputy Hospital Director of Shenzhen Samii International Medical Center (The Fourth People's Hospital of Shenzhen) (SSIMC), was a guest on the "The Way of Health" programme of Shenzhen Radio Station, leading us into the Neurosurgery Department of SSIMC.

What highlights were shared in the interview? Let's review it together!

Part 1: About SSIMC

Q: "SSIMC" sounds like a high-end private medical institution, doesn't it?

WANG Cheng: No. SSIMC is also known as the Fourth People's Hospital of Shenzhen. It is a municipal public hospital located on Jinniu West Road, Pingshan District. It is also a general hospital focusing on Neuroscience. In order to provide medical services to Pingshan and surrounding residents as well as the public, we charge affordable fees in full accordance with the pricing set by the National Development and Reform Commission, and at the same time our services are fully covered by medical insurance.

Q: Why is it named "SSIMC"?

WANG Cheng: This is a major and courageous move by the Shenzhen Municipal Government in the medical reform attempt in 2016. We hope that by cooperating with the team of Prof. Samii, a world-renowned professor of neurosurgery, we will not only introduce the superb medical technology of Prof. Samii and his team, but also introduce their advanced hospital management concepts.

SSIMC is the only public hospital in the country with a foreigner as its director. Since its establishment, it has been highly concerned by the Municipal Health Commission and received strong support from the Pingshan District CPC Committee and District Government. We would like to express our gratitude here.

Q: How long has SSMIC been established?

WANG Cheng: We started the soft opening on December 18, 2017, and officially opened to the public on November 11, 2020. Since then, the appearance of the hospital has also undergone great changes. Not only do we provide comprehensive medical services, but we also have a high-profile opening for the Neurosurgery Department. We have also formed a strategic cooperation with Xuanwu Hospital in Beijing.

With the strong support of Prof. LING Feng, Prof. BAO Yuhai, Prof. JIAN Fengzeng, Prof. ZHANG Hongqi and other well-known neurosurgery experts from Xuanwu Hospital, our Neurosurgery Department has carried out many difficult surgeries, all of which have been successful, and are well received by the residents of Pingshan, Dapeng, Yantian, and Longgang.

Part 2: About Neurosurgery

Q: What is the role of Neurosurgery Department in the hospital?

WANG Cheng: Under the leadership of the municipal and district governments, and with the strong support of Prof. Samii from the German cooperation team, our hospital has focused on the development of Neurosurgery Department.

We can tell all the audience that Neurosurgery Department accounts for half of our hospital, and we will use nearly half of the beds to develop Neurosurgery, Neurology, Neuro-ICU and Neuro-imaging, featuring Neurosurgery; at the same time, we will use the other half of the beds to serve the surrounding residents, and vigorously develop a series of departments such as Internal Medicine, Surgery, Gynecology, Pediatrics, Stomatology, E.N.T., Ophthalmology, and Dermatology, etc.

In order to promote the development of Neurosurgery Department, we not only introduce high-end talents to form an excellent team, but more importantly, we have several major initiatives:

First, we have built the province's first high-end hybrid operating room with intraoperative MRI, which is a hybrid operating room dedicated to the Neurosurgery Department;

Second, we have two 3.0 MRIs, which are very scarce in the eastern region of Shenzhen, to serve the public. It may take a month to queue up for an MRI appointment in a large hospital in downtown. In our hospital, it can be done on the same day or the next day after the examination is prescribed, and the social security card is also accepted.

Q: With what symptoms, should a patient seek for services in Neurosurgery Department?

WANG Cheng: For Neurosurgery Department, three types of diseases are mainly diagnosed and treated:

The first type is brain trauma, such as blow injury, traffic accident, high falling injury, etc.;

The second type is cerebrovascular diseases, such as hemorrhagic and ischemic diseases, including stroke. A large part of these cerebrovascular diseases are also treated in Neurosurgery Department;

The third type is brain tumors. Now we have found more and more brain tumors. Brain tumors are divided into benign and malignant, and also divided into primary and secondary brain tumors. The treatment methods are different, but in general, most brain tumors still require surgical treatment.

Therefore, in Neurosurgery Department, these three diseases are mainly treated.

There are many sub-specialties, including interventional therapy and surgical treatment of cerebrovascular diseases, treatment of trauma and severe diseases, microsurgical treatment of tumors, especially skull base tumors, and Neurosurgery spine treatment, etc.; in addition, there is also the treatment of peripheral neurosurgery, as well as the treatment of functional neurosurgery, etc.

Q: What are the common tumors of the nervous system?

WANG Cheng: There are several types of tumors in the nervous system: one is malignant tumors, mainly represented by gliomas and brain metastases; the other is benign tumors, and the most common ones are meningiomas and pituitary tumors.

Gliomas, brain metastases, meningiomas and pituitary tumors can be clearly diagnosed through the patient's symptoms and MRI. In terms of tumor surgery, our Neurosurgery is relatively mature. Prof. BAO Yuhai from Xuanwu Hospital, a very famous expert in microneurosurgery in our country, has been in our Neurosurgery for a long time, providing services for the citizens of Shenzhen. When working at Xuanwu Hospital, Prof. BAO is an expert to whom an appointment could hardly be made by the patients even through acquaintances. Now we have invited him to our hospital for a long time to lead a team and maintain a strict standard. It should be said that this is the good news for our general public.

Q: Some people may think that benign tumors do not matter because they are not cancer anyway. Is this concept correct?

WANG Cheng: No, benign tumors are also gradually growing. The difference between benign tumors and malignant tumors is not clear in just a few words, roughly speaking:

First, the capsule of benign tumors is complete and the boundaries are clear, while the capsule of malignant tumors is generally incomplete and the boundaries are not clear;

Second, benign tumors generally refer to expansive growth, forming oppression on the surrounding area; malignant tumors refer to invasive growth, invading or engulfing the surrounding area;

Third, benign tumors grow slowly and malignant tumors grow very fast;

Fourth, usually benign tumors do not affect life expectancy, while malignant tumors affect life expectancy. However, for most benign tumors, we still recommend early treatment after discovery.

For example, meningioma, which is more common among benign tumors, has been proved by our clinical observations: Meningioma will basically grow in size after a few years. Instead of waiting until the size increases, we still recommend surgical treatment as soon as possible under the guidance of a physician, especially when the microsurgical technique is very mature, the tumor location is very precise, and the surgical operation is very minimally invasive.

Part 3: Calls from Citizens

Citizen A: I was found to have a sphenoid sinus cyst with a size of 13×7 mm, but the physician said that under normal circumstances, a sphenoid sinus cyst would not cause a cold feeling in the head. (Host: Do you feel a cold head now?) Yes, especially when I lie down and rest at night, the cold feeling is severe, and then I need to wrap my head with a towel.

WANG Cheng: Under normal circumstances, pituitary sphenoid sinus cysts do not require surgical treatment, and you can regularly observe whether there are any changes. But to be on the safe side, I suggest that you first have an MRI plain scan and contrast-enhanced examination; second, you need to check the level of endocrine, such as the status of prolactin and pituitary hormones; third, you may go to Ophthalmology to have a visual check. You can also come to SSIMC, and we will arrange an examination for you. If there is no problem in the examination, we recommend that you observe it for two years. If the size does not change, it will basically not change for life.

Citizen B: I have hemifacial spasm and frequent eye blinking. I would like to ask how to treat it with surgery and whether I should be hospitalized?

WANG Cheng: In layman's words, hemifacial spasm is usually caused by a short circuit between blood vessels and nerves. If you have severe hemifacial spasm, which has seriously affected your study and life, and you always have spasm on this side, you can consider SSIMC for an MRI angiography. Then, if we judge that there is a surgical indication, you need to come to the hospital to make an incision about 4 cm long behind the ear on the same side as the spasm, and you will generally benefit.

Part 4: Features of Neurosurgery in SSIMC

Q: What are the features of Neurosurgery in SSIMC?

WANG Cheng: First, we will devote all our resources to the Neuroscience, including Neurology, Neurosurgery, Neuro-ICU, and Neuro-Imaging.

Second, our hardware equipment is top-notch in China. For example, our 1,500-square-meter neurosurgery hybrid operating room is equipped with intraoperative MRI, intraoperative DSA, intraoperative navigation, intraoperative robots, etc. We also have ICU dedicated to the Neurosurgery Department to ensure the safety of patients.

The third point is staffing. We openly recruit teams with high academic qualifications and professional titles from all over the world, which can provide good services for patients. At the same time, we cooperate with Xuanwu Hospital to serve the citizens of Shenzhen with the support of Prof. LING Feng and Prof. BAO Yuhai.

There is even better news to tell you that we will contact Prof. Madjid Samii in Hanover, Germany every week by remote consultation to provide free consultation and solve difficult cases for Shenzhen citizens. If the public has needs in this regard, please contact our hospital at any time, bring difficult X-ray and cases or even bring patients here, and we will provide you with treatment or diagnosis opinions free of charge. You do not need to worry about translation, our hospital will provide translation services.