Advancements in surgical procedures

Courtesy Ferrell-Duncan Clinic, Greater Springfield LIVING WELL Magazine

It’s 8:37 a.m. and Dr. Matthew Simpson is leading a surgical team performing a life saving surgery on a 23-year-old woman critically injured when metal from an automobile accident entered her abdomen. At 2:15 p.m., this same day, Simpson will perform surgery on a 43-year-old male to remove his gallbladder, a patient that will be resting at home by early evening.

In the course a day, the surgeon is likely to perform a complex abdominal hernia surgery, change the life of a morbidly obese patient with bariatric surgery, and be called upon to perform life saving surgery due to a catastrophic injury.

Editors Note: We talked with Dr. Matthew Simpson, noted trauma, critical care, general and bariatric surgeon with Springfield’s Ferrell-Duncan Clinic to learn about extraordinary advancements in surgery from one of the Ozarks leading health care providers. We learned that state-of-the-art procedures used by Simpson are now “the standard of care.”

Dr. Simpson on Advancement in Surgical Procedures

Today, a majority of the surgical procedures that Dr. Simpson performs are laparoscopic, and often performed on an outpatient basis. This is a radical change from just a few short years ago when virtually any surgical procedure could mean a lengthy hospital stay, days or weeks away from home, family, work, and normal activities.

Laparoscopic surgery, often referred to as minimally invasive surgery, is a surgical technique in which operations in the abdomen are performed through very small incisions, and makes use of images displayed on TV monitors to magnify the surgical elements. This provides a surgeon like Simpson a more precise view of the surgical field, and an array of benefits to his patients.

There are a number of advantages for a patient when Simpson performs laparoscopic surgery versus an open procedure. These include reduced pain due to smaller incisions, shorter recovery time, and often less risk of infection. Due to the very small incisions, there is dramatically less scarring as well.

Life Changing Surgery

With an estimated 200,000+ adults in the Ozarks region that can be medically described as morbidly obese, or “super morbidly obese,” Simpson expanded his scope of specialization to include bariatric (or weight loss) surgery. Obesity is one of the most significant contributors to an array of life threatening conditions, ranging from diabetes to cardiac arrest.

The bariatric surgeries performed by Simpson include a variety of procedures. Weight loss is achieved by reducing the size of the stomach with an implanted medical device (gastric band) or through removal of a portion of the stomach (sleeve gastrectomy) or by resecting and re-routing the small intestines to a small stomach pouch (gastric bypass surgery). The results are dramatic, and the change in the life of the patient can be profound. Not only from an overall health standpoint, but also a great many patients find they enjoy activities that before the surgery simply were not an option.

Trauma Acute Care Surgery

Following a catastrophic injury, one that can often mean extreme trauma to the chest and abdomen, severe head injury, and multiple fractures, a surgeon like Simpson is frequently called upon. His specialized fellowship training in trauma acute care surgery and critical care can mean a difference between life and death for such a critically ill patient. These can be cases in which there are multiple organs failing all at the same time; including the heart, kidneys, and lungs. In such cases, Simpson often becomes the surgeon who oversees what may be multiple surgeries.

While each such case is unique, Simpson may call upon a neuro-surgeon, an orthopedic surgeon, or other surgical specialists, while Simpson’s skills address the internal injuries and over all physiologic issues. His advanced training allows him to become a “team leader” that deploys not only a surgical team, but other surgical specialists in acute cases. He is one of those rare surgeons that is specially trained in the management of critically ill and injured patients. In addition to the general surgeries he performs, his acute care surgery practice meets the needs of those patients requiring emergency general surgery and provides surgery and follow-up to those patients, as well as referral back to their home community physicians.

With advanced training in multiple types of surgery, patients often find it reassuring to know that a surgeon such as Simpson is the physician that will be addressing their hernia, gallbladder, or removal of an appendix. Simpson is quick to point out that no surgery is “routine,” and to each patient, his or her surgery is extremely serious. This means that he and his team never treat any surgical procedure as a routine matter. For many patients, there is a higher confidence in knowing that an outpatient surgery Simpson will perform on them this afternoon is being conducted by a surgeon who has faced the most complex of surgeries.

It became obvious in the course of an interview with the surgeon that his overwhelming concern was providing the highest level of care for each individual patient. Regardless of the severity of the required procedure, the care inside and outside the OR that the patient receives is his biggest concern.

Matthew Simpson, MD

Dr. Matthew Simpson is a surgeon with Springfield’s Ferrell-Duncan Clinic, 1001 E. Primrose, Springfield, MO, which is in partnership with COXHealth..

He is ABMS of Surgery Board Certified with Fellowship Training in Trauma Acute Care Surgery. Dr. Simpson attended Ross University School of Medicine, with Residency at Marshall University’s Edwards School of Medicine, Fellowship at University of Louisville School of Medicine, and University of Kentucky Chandler Medical Center.

Springfield is home to Dr. Simpson, who is a graduate of Kickapoo High School, and attained his BS degree from Pittsburgh State University.

Dr. Simpson may be reached for an appointment by calling 417-875-3230.