Assoc. Prof. Dr. Halil Kara

Assoc. Prof. Dr. Halil Kara is a general surgeon at Acibadem Maslak Hospital in İstanbul, where he practices within the Bariatric & Metabolic Surgery and General Surgery units. His subspecialty areas are the treatment of hemorrhoids and anorectal diseases, endocrine surgery, obesity surgery and robotic surgery. He has more than 25 years in medicine.

Dr. Kara graduated from İstanbul University Cerrahpaşa Faculty of Medicine in 2001 and trained as a resident doctor in the same institution’s Department of General Surgery from 2002 to 2008, completing his general surgery training in 2008. He subsequently worked at Aksaz Asker Hospital (2008–2009) and as a General Surgery Specialist at Gülnar State Hospital (2009–2011) before joining Acıbadem Healthcare Services in 2011. He is a member of the Turkish Surgical Association and the Turkish Medical Association. His co-authored work includes retrospective studies on the clinical presentation, preoperative localization and reoperation of primary hyperparathyroidism presented at the European Society of Endocrine Surgeons 3rd Biennial Congress in Barcelona in 2008, a paper on respiratory mechanics during Nissen fundoplication published in Surg Laparosc Endosc Percutan Tech in 2008, and an initial-experience report on radioguided localization of nonpalpable breast lesions presented at the 8th Milan Breast Cancer Conference in 2006.

Clinical focus

A substantial part of Dr. Kara’s practice is devoted to surgery for obesity. He assesses patients being considered for obesity treatment and performs bariatric procedures such as gastric bypass. Robotic surgery is one of his subspecialty areas, and he applies robotic techniques where they are considered appropriate for the individual patient. He also works in endocrine surgery, an area reflected in his published work on parathyroid disease.

Dr. Kara treats anorectal conditions, including hemorrhoids and anal fissure, and provides assessment and treatment for a range of other anorectal diseases. In breast surgery, his areas of expertise include mastectomy, breast reconstruction and gynecomastia surgery. Whether a surgical option is suitable, and which technique is chosen, depends on the findings of the individual clinical evaluation.

How Dr. Kara works with international patients

Dr. Kara consults in Turkish and English, and interpreters can be arranged for patients who speak other languages. The Acibadem international patient team coordinates the collection of prior reports and imaging, for example MRI, CT, X-ray or ultrasound reports, laboratory and pathology results, operative notes and discharge summaries, and arranges appointments and the hospital visit. A first consultation typically covers the patient’s history and symptoms, a review of existing imaging and previous treatments, a clinical examination and a discussion of the available options. Video consultations are available for international patients who wish to discuss their situation with Dr. Kara before deciding whether to travel.