Introduction

Pediatric surgery is a specialized field of surgery for the treatment of conditions that can be surgically corrected in a baby, child, or adolescent.
The purpose of pediatric surgery varies with the procedure. In general, the purpose is to surgically correct a congenital condition, disease, traumatic injury, or other disorder in the pediatric patient.
Pediatric surgery is the surgical branch that uses operative techniques to correct certain pediatric conditions (i.e., congenital abnormalities, tumors, chronic diseases, and traumatic injuries). There are different specialties within the field.
The pediatric surgeon must take into account the special requirements unique to the young surgical patient. The pediatric surgeon is trained to treat the entire spectrum of surgical illnesses. The following is an overview (with symptoms) of the more common pediatric conditions that require surgery typically performed by the pediatric surgeon.

Types of Pediatric Surgery

Pediatric surgery is the medical specialty concerned with the surgical treatment of infants, children and adolescents. Pediatric surgeons are the healthcare providers responsible for carrying out these procedures after crafting a pre-operative plan based on the patient's findings. The surgery may be divided into several different areas of expertise.
Surgeries in the pediatric population may be arbitrarily divided into major, minor, elective and urgent surgeries. Surgeries of the head and neck, as well as the chest and some abdominal operations, fall under the auspice of major surgery.
Minor pediatric surgeries are considered to be procedures that allow children to return to their everyday lives within a relatively quick period postoperatively. These surgeries may be done on an outpatient basis with children being allowed to go home the very same day or the one thereafter. Major complications are also very rare following minor surgeries. The removal of excess skin, biopsies and the correction of long bone fractures may all be considered minor surgical operations.
When a child does not necessarily need an urgent surgery, for example circumcision in boys, it is referred to as elective surgery. This means that surgeons may conduct the surgery on later dates and may take into account the wishes of the parents and guardians.
Major surgeries tend to be very complex and may be associated with increased risks in addition to a longer recovery period and hospitalization. For instance, the removal of central nervous system tumors or the reparation of congenital heart defects may be included in this category of pediatric surgeries. Also included are the correction of skull malformations, spinal anomalies and pulmonary, gastrointestinal and serious physiological anomalies.