ZAGA Cadaver Course Barcelona: International Surgeons
- Laura Estallo
The September 2024 ZAGA Course ran from 3 to 6 September in Barcelona, with 26 participants. Dr. Carlos Aparicio taught the first two days. Dr. Adi Lorean from ZAGA Center Tel Aviv and Dr. Samintharaj Kumar, founder of ZAGA Center Singapore, joined on day three for pterygoid implants and complications. Overall satisfaction in the anonymous end-of-course survey was 99.6%.
Dates and fees for the next zygomatic and pterygoid implant course in Barcelona are on the course page.
Thank you to Straumann, Bontempi, Dental 3D Models and JK Dental Group. Straumann supplied the implants for both the model and the cadaver sessions. The 3D models came with simulated bleeding, which is more useful than it sounds: you have to keep the field clear to see the osteotomy, exactly as in surgery. JK Dental Group lent the loupes, and Bontempi provided the ZAGA Kit instrument cassettes for the cadaver day.
Days 1 and 2: the ZAGA Concept with Dr. Aparicio
Two days of lectures on the ZAGA Concept: the anatomy of the zygomatic buttress, the ZAGA classification, trajectory planning, and then case after case of how the classification plays out in surgery. Part of the group came from Russia, so the lectures ran with English-to-Russian translation.
Day 3: pterygoid implants with Dr. Lorean, complications with Dr. Kumar
Dr. Lorean took the pterygomaxillary implant session, lecture first and then hands-on, continuing what we started in the previous edition. Dr. Kumar covered zygomatic complications: what can go wrong during surgery, what shows up months later, and how to manage each.
Both stayed for the hands-on workshop with Dr. Aparicio, moving between tables and answering questions as they came up. In the “Coffee and Questions” slot participants brought their own cases and planning doubts to the three speakers.
Rooftop dinner and diplomas
On the evening of day three we took the group to a rooftop with a view of the Sagrada Família for tapas and cava, and handed out the diplomas there. It is the part of the course where participants turn into colleagues.
There was also a social media contest during the week. Dr. Edward Lee won it with the most creative post and took home a voucher for a customized ZAGA 3D model for one of his future surgeries, plus a bottle of vermouth from a local winery.
Day 4: cadaver surgery at the Faculty of Medicine
The last day moved to the Faculty of Medicine at the Universitat de Barcelona for surgery on cryopreserved heads. Everyone placed zygomatic and pterygoid implants, with Dr. Aparicio, Dr. Lorean and Dr. Kumar correcting entry points and angulation table by table. Cryopreserved tissue behaves close to living tissue, so the drilling feel and the sinus membrane are realistic in a way that models cannot be.
ZAGA Social: 3,391 € raised
During the week we offered participants a copy of Dr. Aparicio’s book, Advanced Zygomatic Implants: The ZAGA Concept, signed by the author, in exchange for a donation to the ZAGA Social program. The program pays for zygomatic rehabilitations for edentulous patients who cannot afford them and supports dental students who want to learn the technique.
Thank you to Dr. Aleksei Goncharov, Dr. Filipp Gorelov, Dr. Oleg Tukhvatullin, Dr. Aleksandr Romantsov, Dr. Javier Arturo Paz, Dr. Kerem Turgut Atasoy, Dr. Naruto Otawa, Dr. Dimitrev Ilya, Dr. Athanasios Tampouris, Dr. Caliniuc Catalin Vasile, Dr. Adrianne Golly, Dr. Misagh Habibi, Dr. Leonel Santos and Dr. Edward Jh Lee. Between them the group raised 3,391 € for ZAGA Social.
99.6% on the ZAGA course satisfaction survey
The 26 participants came from the United States, Japan, Australia, Greece, Poland, Russia, Mexico, Taiwan and Canada. We survey every group anonymously at the end of the course. This edition scored:
- theory sessions: 99.1%
- hands-on cadaver sessions: 99.6%
- hands-on 3D model sessions: 98.6%
- pterygoid implant sessions: 96.8%
- overall satisfaction: 99.6%
What the participants said
Dr. Adrianne Golly, Dr. Misagh Habibi, Dr. Cosmin Paduraru and Dr. Filipp Gorelov on what they came for and what they are taking back to their clinics.
The speakers on zygomatic and pterygoid implants
Dr. Carlos Aparicio, Dr. Adi Lorean and Dr. Samintharaj Kumar, recorded during the course.
Learn the ZAGA Concept Now
Online course
Eleven modules with quizzes, available the moment you enrol. Study at your own pace; complete all the quizzes and you receive a 15 CE certificate for 15 hours of learning.
Cadaver course
Three to four days in Barcelona or New York with Dr. Carlos Aparicio: lectures on the ZAGA Concept, practice on 3D patient models, then surgery on cryopreserved heads.
Live Surgery Training
Operate on real patients at ZAGA Center São Paulo with Dr. André Sakima and Dr. Jan Peter Ilg at the table. The closest thing to your first zygomatic case, with a mentor.
