Central Military Hospital 108 Craniofacial and Plastic Surgery Center

The Center for Craniofacial and Plastic Surgery, designated B8, is a specialist surgical centre within Central Military Hospital 108 in Hanoi. It manages craniofacial congenital conditions, maxillofacial disease and trauma, facial and body defects requiring reconstruction, skin and soft-tissue surgery, microsurgery, selected gender-affirming reconstruction and aesthetic surgery. This is a tertiary hospital service, not a standalone beauty clinic.

The centre comprises the Craniofacial Surgery Department (B8-A) and the Plastic and Microsurgery Department (B8-B). Hospital 108 lists Associate Professor Nguyễn Quang Đức as centre director and head of B8-B, and Dr Lê Diệp Linh as deputy director and head of B8-A. The current centre structure was established on 28 April 2021, building on a surgical tradition dated by the hospital to 1962.

Two departments with different surgical roles

B8-A is the craniofacial arm. The centre’s official remit includes congenital craniofacial differences, maxillofacial disease, facial trauma and its sequelae, and reconstruction of defects. Children with cleft lip and palate or more complex craniofacial conditions may need coordinated assessment across several hospital specialties rather than one isolated operation.

B8-B focuses on plastic and microsurgery. Its page lists emergency consultation and treatment for maxillofacial conditions and sequelae, surgery for skin and soft-tissue disease, reconstruction of defects affecting the body and limbs, aesthetic shaping of the trunk and extremities, and gender-affirming reconstruction. The department also performs routine maxillofacial pathological and reconstructive surgery.

The division helps patients ask for the correct route. A congenital or traumatic craniofacial problem may begin with B8-A, while a complex soft-tissue defect or microsurgical reconstruction may be directed to B8-B. Final triage belongs to the hospital team, especially when the case crosses both departments.

Cleft lip, palate and comprehensive craniofacial care

Hospital 108 describes regular humanitarian programmes for children with cleft lip, cleft palate and craniofacial differences, sometimes in cooperation with Vietnamese and international surgical charities. Historical programme numbers show the scale of past activity, but they do not prove that free surgery is continuously open or that every child qualifies for a current campaign.

Families should contact the hospital for active screening dates, age or clinical criteria, documents and whether assessment occurs in Hanoi or during an outreach visit. A cleft-care pathway can involve feeding, hearing, speech, dentistry, orthodontics, anaesthesia and staged surgery over several years. One charitable operation should not be presented as the entire treatment plan.

Bring birth and medical records, previous operation notes, photographs, imaging, hearing or speech reports and a list of current concerns. International families should ask which documents need Vietnamese translation and how long they may need to remain in Hanoi for assessment and postoperative review.

Trauma, acquired defects and head-and-neck coordination

The centre treats maxillofacial trauma, residual deformity and defects acquired through disease or prior surgery. Complex facial injury can involve bone alignment, soft tissue, nerves, eyes, airway and dental occlusion. Acute injury should enter through emergency care rather than waiting for an elective B8 appointment.

Hospital 108 states that a multidisciplinary head-and-neck tumour conference is held weekly. This indicates coordinated review across specialties for difficult cases; it does not mean every patient is automatically presented or that the conference replaces direct consultation. People referred after tumour removal should bring pathology, imaging and the original operative report so reconstructive planning is based on the full oncological context.

For an old injury, document the original event, operations, implants, infection history and functional problems such as chewing, speech, eyelid closure or facial movement. Reconstruction should address function and anatomy as well as appearance.

Microsurgery and three-dimensional planning

B8-B says it performs microsurgery routinely and uses three-dimensional technology to support surgical quality. Microsurgical reconstruction may transfer tissue with its blood vessels to cover a defect, while 3D planning can help analyse bone shape or prepare a complex operation. These capabilities are relevant to selected cases but do not establish that every patient needs a free flap or a 3D model.

Ask what tissue is proposed, the donor-site consequences, expected operation length, monitoring after surgery and what happens if blood flow to a flap is compromised. For 3D planning, clarify whether the plan uses CT data, whether a model or cutting guide will be produced and whether that work has a separate fee.

The official material describes hospital capability, not guaranteed success. Reconstructive outcomes depend on the defect, circulation, infection, smoking, general health and rehabilitation.

Aesthetic surgery is part of a hospital pathway

The B8 centre has the hospital’s highest specialist responsibility for aesthetic surgery and works with Hospital 108’s separate Aesthetic Center and other departments. B8-B has corresponding responsibility for aesthetic and reconstructive work on the trunk and limbs. This arrangement means a person asking about cosmetic surgery may be routed through another hospital unit before an operation is assigned.

The hospital publishes 096 966 9108 for booking and consultation through the Aesthetic Center. That number is not presented as a direct B8 departmental line. Confirm which centre will conduct the consultation, who the surgeon is, the approved operating location, anaesthesia and where postoperative care occurs.

For a broader comparison, Vietnam Clinic’s guide to plastic surgery clinics in Hanoi can help frame questions about hospital support, surgeon scope and follow-up. Aesthetic marketing should not overshadow the centre’s primary role in complex craniofacial and reconstructive surgery.

Gender-affirming reconstruction in the published remit

Both the centre overview and B8-B page include gender-affirming reconstruction among their functions. The material reviewed does not provide a current procedure list, eligibility pathway, multidisciplinary assessment process, waiting time or price. It would therefore be inaccurate to claim that every gender-affirming operation is presently available on request.

Prospective patients should ask what procedures the centre currently performs, which records or assessments are required, whether treatment is staged, and how postoperative care is organised. International patients also need to consider follow-up after returning home and whether local clinicians can manage wound care or complications.

Respectful communication and informed consent are essential. Administrative or legal requirements may change, so current hospital guidance should take priority over old articles or third-party listings.

Registration routes for Vietnamese and international patients

Hospital 108 provides separate online registration links for international or external-relations care, on-demand examination and general service examination. The B8 pages do not publish their own outpatient timetable or direct telephone, so patients should use the hospital route and state Center B8 for Craniofacial and Plastic Surgery plus the diagnosis or reason for referral.

The hospital’s on-demand examination number is 097 183 0166. Its Social Work Office uses 033 310 0018 to explain processes and guide patients, while 024 6674 3311 handles questions about professional and health-insurance procedures. These are hospital-wide contacts, not exclusive B8 numbers.

The main address is 1 Trần Hưng Đạo Street, Hai Bà Trưng Ward, Hanoi, and the general email is bvtuqd108@benhvien108.vn. Hospital 108 also offers a navigation tool because the campus contains many buildings and departments. Ask where to register before looking for the B8 clinical area directly.

Insurance, quotations and charitable programmes

B8-B explicitly states that it treats military beneficiaries, policy groups, people using Vietnamese social health insurance, the general public and foreign patients. This confirms access categories, not automatic coverage. BHYT benefits depend on eligibility, referral and procedure rules; elective aesthetic surgery may fall outside coverage.

Request an itemised estimate for consultation, imaging, laboratory testing, implants or custom guides, surgeon and anaesthesia fees, hospital stay, pathology, medicines and follow-up. Hospital 108 provides a price-request route, but complex reconstruction may require clinical planning before a final quotation is possible.

Charitable cleft and craniofacial campaigns are periodic programmes with their own selection and funding. Do not assume that their terms apply to routine treatment or international patients. Confirm the programme organiser, dates, covered costs and obligations directly.

Preparing records for a complex surgical opinion

Send or bring the most relevant documents in chronological order: diagnosis, previous operative reports, pathology, CT or MRI data, implant details, photographs and records of complications. For imaging, ask whether the centre needs a DICOM disc rather than only printed films. Include current medicines, allergies, smoking history and major medical conditions.

International patients should ask whether an English-speaking coordinator or interpreter is available. The centre pages are in Vietnamese and do not publish staff language capabilities, so English support is not assumed. A precise interpreter is particularly important when discussing donor-site risk, staged operations, consent and rehabilitation.

Plan enough time in Hanoi for examination, additional testing, surgery if offered and follow-up. Complex reconstruction cannot be safely scheduled from a brief online description alone.

When emergency or another specialty comes first

Fresh facial trauma, airway difficulty, uncontrolled bleeding, severe infection or a compromised reconstructive flap requires urgent hospital assessment. Do not wait for an elective consultation. Some conditions also need initial review by neurosurgery, ophthalmology, ENT, dentistry, oncology, paediatrics or anaesthesia before B8 can finalise a plan.

The centre’s value lies in hospital-based integration: craniofacial surgery, plastic and microsurgery operate alongside diagnostic, anaesthetic, inpatient and multidisciplinary services. Its official scope is extensive, but the correct department, procedure, language support, schedule and cost must be confirmed for the individual case.