PRS KOREA 2016: 50th Anniversary of the Korean Society of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgeons and Another Successful Congress for Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery

The Korean Society of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgeons (KSPRS) celebrated its 50th anniversary in 2016, and has established itself as a distinguished academic society for plastic surgery. In the 1950s, when the Korean War had a devastating impact on South Korea (hereafter, Korea), doctors pioneered the field of plastic surgery in Korea and treated injured patients with war wounds and children with congenital disorders. Following the initial introduction of plastic surgery into Korea, the KSPRS was founded to establish plastic surgery as an academic field in medicine and has trained plastic surgery specialists ever since. Thanks to the efforts and accomplishments of KSPRS members since its inception, the field of plastic surgery in Korea has gained international recognition beyond Asia, and is currently spreading its academic achievements and surgical technologies as part of the broader phenomenon of the Korean Wave. No plastic surgery techniques were available in Korea in 1945, when Korea gained independence from Japan. However, medicine in Korea took a new turn with the entry of Western doctors and the introduction of Western medical literature into Korea after independence. Some surgeons among the missionary doctors performed skin grafts on patients with facial and finger dis-figurement and contracture due to severe and chronic ulcers, defects, and burns on the skin. With the outbreak of the Korean War in 1950, medical personnel from the US and the United Nations began the active treatment of patients with war wounds. Busan, performed various plastic surgery procedures, including treatment for cleft lip and palate patients and reconstructive procedures. Despite the presence of these talented foreign doctors in Korea, they remained concentrated on their duties of treating injured patients and were not able to assist in the general development of medicine, especially plastic surgery, in Korea. Severance Hospital, thereby establishing plastic surgery as a specialized field of medicine and training specialists in the field for the first time in Korea [1]. Over the years, plastic surgery eventually became acknowledged as a specialized field of medicine, and on May 15, 1966, the KSPRS held its inaugural general meeting. With the founding of the KSPRS, its members focused their efforts on education regarding the general concepts of plastic surgery and engaged in academic discussions, in order to increase interest and awareness among the general public and physicians. The KSPRS continued its efforts and made great scholarly achievements , and in 1970, the KSPRS was accepted as …