Dr Vu Hoang Lien graduated from Hanoi University of Medicine and Pharmacy in 1991 and received a Master of Medicine Degree in Orthopaedic Surgery in 2002 from the same school. Dr Lien has also completed advanced training courses in Orthopaedic Trauma, Pitie-Salpêtrière Hospital, Paris, France (1996); Orthopaedic Trauma and Hand Surgery, Bichat Hospital, Paris, France (1997); Microsurgery Techniques, Hospital 108, Hanoi (1999); Hand Surgery, French Hand Surgery Institute, Paris, France (2002); Arthroscopic Surgery, University of Medicine and Pharmacy, Paris, France (2006).
Vu Hoang Lien, MD, MSc, Hand Surgery Department, FV Hospital
As a senior doctor in the field of hand surgery, Dr Vu Hoang Lien decided to follow in the footsteps of her father, who was also an orthopaedic surgeon. Unafraid of the challenges posed by this complex discipline, Dr Vu Hoang Lien dared to enter the field that not many doctors in Vietnam dare to commit to, with the goal of giving children born with disabilities or trauma due to accident the opportunity to have a healthy, functional hand.
Dr Hoang Lien has 31 years of surgical experience and regular worked alongside some of the world’s most famous hand surgeons early in her career, including Dr Peter Nathan, from the US, Dr Alain Gilbert- Dominique Le Viet, who visited from France from 1993 to 2000, and Dr Stephane Guero, a French hand surgeon who has worked at FVH since 2002. By participating in performing surgeries to correct rare hand deformities, Dr Lien had opportunity to accumulate a great deal of important experience which only heightened her desire to develop more in this field.
Dr Lien shares, “In technical hand deformity surgery, there are always challenges for doctors, especially in cases of children aged one to two years old who require techniques to expose very delicate small blood vascular structures. Some types of deformities need to be monitored for a long time after the first surgery so that defects can be promptly corrected as the child grows, including unstable joints and fingers which ae crooked due to an imbalance of tendons. In cases where children have with so-called “sticky fingers”, burn scars or missing or excess fingers, the doctor will have to choose which finger to keep, or which upper part of a finger to connect to the lower part of the finger. Toe bone grafts can be used to lengthen a missing knuckle, or create a new thumb from the finger in pathology where a thumb isn’t present. A structurally abnormal hand may require two or three operations to restore grip function and structure.
Dr Vu Hoang Lien joined the team of FV’s Bone & Joint Centre in 2003
After joining the Bone and Joint Centre team at FV Hospital in 2003, Dr Vu Hoang Lien has had the opportunity to work with skilled, experienced doctors, and coordinates interdisciplinary treatment protocols for patients with complicated situations. FV is committed to constantly updating and applying advanced equipment so that doctors can offer effective examination, diagnosis and treatment to our patients.
With so many years of experience in the field of hand surgery, Dr Vu Hoang Lien now wishes that the specialty of congenital hand deformity surgery could be further developed so that children could be treated after birth and before they reach one year old, as the earlier the child is treated, the higher their chance of recovery, helping children to better adapt after surgery and face fewer difficulties as they grow.
To book an appointment with Dr Vu Hoang Lien, Hand Surgery Department, FV Hospital, please call: (028) 5411 3333, ext. 1227, 1540
