Foo K T
Department of Urology, Singapore General Hospital.
Ann Acad Med Singap. 1993 Mar;22(2):261-6.
Urology has been an evolving specialty since the time of Hippocrates. The itinerant surgeon was known to go from town to town to remove bladder stones in the early middle ages. In this century, urologists had been at the forefront in pioneering minimally invasive surgery with the introduction of transurethral resection of the prostate more than 50 years ago in the United States. This could be considered the first revolution in urology and this has influenced the evolution of urology in Singapore. Transurethral surgery had proved to be far superior to open surgery for most lesions of the lower urinary tract. This technique was introduced to Singapore in the early 1970s by Dr N E Wong. Because of the need for special instruments, skill and training, there was a need for a Department of Urology. This was not to be until after the second revolution in urology. The second revolution saw the introduction of endoscopic surgery of the upper urinary tract and Extra-corporeal Shockwave Lithotripsy in the early 1980s. This had truly revolutionised the treatment of urinary stones and today almost 95% of patients can be treated with these non to minimally invasive techniques. These new modalities of treatment were rapidly introduced in Singapore in the mid 1980s. The need for the establishment of urology as a specialty was more urgently felt. The Singapore Urological Association was formed in February 1986 and in March 1987, a Division of Urology was formed at the Singapore General Hospital.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
自希波克拉底时代以来，泌尿外科一直是一个不断发展的专科。在中世纪早期，巡回外科医生会从一个城镇辗转到另一个城镇，为患者切除膀胱结石。在本世纪，50多年前美国率先引入经尿道前列腺切除术，泌尿外科医生一直处于微创外科手术的前沿。这可以被视为泌尿外科的第一次革命，它也影响了新加坡泌尿外科的发展。对于大多数下尿路病变，经尿道手术已被证明远比开放手术优越。20世纪70年代初，黄乃裳医生将这项技术引入新加坡。由于需要特殊器械、技能和培训，因此有必要设立一个泌尿外科。直到泌尿外科的第二次革命之后，这才得以实现。第二次革命见证了20世纪80年代初上尿路内镜手术和体外冲击波碎石术的引入。这真的彻底改变了尿路结石的治疗方式，如今几乎95%的患者都可以通过这些非侵入性到微创性的技术进行治疗。这些新的治疗方式在20世纪80年代中期迅速引入新加坡。人们更加迫切地感到有必要将泌尿外科确立为一个专科。新加坡泌尿外科协会于1986年2月成立，1987年3月，新加坡总医院成立了泌尿外科。（摘要截选至250词）
