In the corridor on the second floor of a hospital located on Avenida 10 de Agosto and Diguja, north of Quito, a man wanders from one place to another.He talks to some, apparently giving instructions.The women in white who approach him sign some metal tables similar to clinical histories, and others who, like him, also wear a white coat with a note that says "doctor so-and-so", distinguishes them with a handshake. and a warm hug.It's Alvaro Ontaneda.42 years.Plastic surgeon by profession and for 96 months passionate about microsurgery.Behind his sober appearance, penetrating gaze and upright posture hides a Da Vinci.An artist and sculptor of bodies, of souls and also of hopes.Throughout his career he has treated more than 300 people.All at risk of losing their extremities or limbs due to illness, work accidents or traffic.Lack of supplies or paperwork postpones surgeries at the IESSAll his cases have been relevant, he says.Some more serious than others.But none as impressive as the one he attended last Friday, August 5, in the company of two other doctors of a similar occupation.Around 7:00 p.m. that day, a 13-year-old boy entered the operating room.His right hand was detached from his arm.He happened in a traffic accident, at noon, in Machachi, southeast of the capital.Surgical interventions and special treatments lasted almost 20 days to reimplant his limb.I feel happy for the 13-year-old boy that we were able to help.They are complex cases, but we recover his quality of life.The first operation lasted nine hours.They removed the skin that was in poor condition and attached the arm bone to the hand.They used four nails.Eight hours were taken for the second intervention.Here, all the work was carried out through a microscope with which an artery, two veins, two tendons for the wrist, nine more for the fingers, a median nerve and a capital nerve were linked and reconstructed.The use of a strong thread, finer than a hair, was essential to achieve the objective, but Ontaneda's expertise and skill were key.It took the man about 20 minutes, per tube, to restore blood flow and mobility to his hand.In each artery, vein or tendon he made about 12 stitches to suture.Six days later, after being in anxiety due to a possible rejection of the operation carried out, the third operation was finally carried out.Reconstructing the skin of the affected part was the goal.Then a 19 by 8 centimeter flap was placed on the injured part, which was extracted from the patient's left lateral thigh.10 days later, his hand looked normal, the blood flow returned and the boy recovered his limb.With this, this case became the first carried out in Quito, in the pediatric area.Wednesday, 10:00.Ontaneda does not stop clasping his hands as he narrates this event.And he suddenly locks himself in silence.He takes out his cell phone and, leaning on a black pen, exposes what appears to be his treasure.He enlivens the story with images that he jealously guards on his mobile.He smiles and says that they are the memories of him.That more than satisfied with the work done, he feels happy... for the boy, for his family and because he had another opportunity.Then he blurts out that he always remembers that with his profession he can help others.And that he enjoys doing it, but even more to see them recovered and intact.“The first objective and purpose I have is to help.Improving the quality of life, saving limbs, restoring aesthetics and the function of injured parts and even in many cases, also saving the lives of patients”, he says.But this Da Vinci of microsurgery has also been the teacher of others.Mainly from those who wage disputes with cancer.To date, 40% of his patients have come for injuries caused by this soundless disease that lacerated the scalp, breasts, legs, head and neck.On the other hand, the other 50% were victims of traffic accidents and the remaining 10% had an accident at work.Children with cancer make it more vulnerable.And then he is distressed when he says that in 2020 he cared for an eight-year-old girl.She had a tumor in the middle of her forehead that separated her eyes and deformed her nose.It is not explained why such a discreet disease is so aggressive, but before mentioning the outcome he heaves a sigh of relief and exposes her teeth while smiling.“After 12 hours of operation, during which time I had to open the head and remove the brain to remove the tumor mass, I finally reconstructed the little girl's face.Two years later I saw her again and she looked like nothing.She was happy, playing”.The same thing happened with a 70-year-old woman who had a breast tumor.She removed it, but her heart and lungs were exposed.It was then that the doctor placed some titanium bars to give stability to the rib cage and sealed the operation with an implant of muscle and skin in the affected area to restore its façade.And so the before and after images of the people he has attended pass by, to whom, in addition to restoring their aesthetics, repairing injuries, he resurrected their hope to live and rebuilt their self-esteem, one that many had at brink of emotional death.This doctor comes from a family of doctors.The passion for microsurgery was inherited from his maternal uncle.He also performs interventions in a public hospital and in Solca.40% of his patients suffered from cancer and had lesions on their body due to the presence of the disease.ALL RIGHTS RESERVED ©2022.IT IS EXPRESSLY FORBIDDEN, BOTH DIRECTLY AND INDIRECTLY, TO ASSIGN OR TRANSMIT ALL OR PART OF THE INFORMATION HEREIN PRESENTED TO THIRD PARTIES, WITHOUT THE CORRESPONDING LICENSE OR AUTHORIZATION BY GRÁFICOS NACIONALES SA