LAHORE : In a field where millimetres define success and recovery can reshape lives, one Pakistani surgeon has quietly built a global reputation for inventing tools that change how operations are performed.
Dr Afzaal Bashir Bajwa, Associate Professor of Plastic Surgery at the Jinnah Burn & Reconstructive Surgery Centre, Allama Iqbal Medical College, Lahore, has developed 19 patented surgical instruments, many of which solve long-standing challenges in plastic surgery.
Besides having served at Pakistan’s leading institutions, including KEMU, Faisalabad Medical University, and currently at AIMC, the scope of his inventions reveals a consistent theme - simplifying procedures, reducing operative time, and enhancing surgical safety. One of his most notable contributions is the surgical device for nasal augmentation with cartilage, a tool that allows diced costal cartilage to be loaded and deposited with remarkable speed and precision. Traditionally, preparing cartilage for augmentation of the nasal dorsum, alar base, or malar region could take up to two hours. His device, however, loads cartilage within thirty seconds using a suction mechanism, while calibrated markings help gauge depth and volume. ‘Time saved in the operating room translates directly into safer, more predictable outcomes, says Dr Bajwa, whose academic depth with FCPS and MS in Plastic Surgery, FACS and a PhD in Plastic Surgery, and dual M Phil in Nutrition and Public Health matches his inventive instinct.
Another innovation, the surgical device for removing dorsal nasal humps, addresses one of the most common deformities in rhinoplasty. By combining a rasp for bone and a cutter for cartilage—both controlled through a shutter mechanism—surgeons can switch between functions seamlessly. ‘The goal was to give plastic and ENT surgeons a single comprehensive tool,’ Dr Bajwa explains. ‘It lets them harmonise the nose more efficiently.’
Eyelid surgery has also benefitted from his ingenuity. His device for correcting upper-eyelid ptosis incorporates a system to hold fascial or tendon slings while a pointed, malleable tip passes through eyelid tissues in one smooth motion. “One clean pass minimizes oedema and speeds up recovery,” he notes.
Instruments used in routine plastic surgery have also been rethought. His double forceps, featuring both plain and toothed sides, allow quick switching with the press of a button - a design that saves time and prevents tissue trauma. Equally impactful is his granulation tissue remover, which uses an adjustable gauge to leave behind the required layer of tissue, creating the smooth surface essential for successful skin grafting.
Safety in the operating room informs several of his inventions. His safety scalpel includes a button-activated guard that prevents accidental cuts during handovers. The adjustable double scalpel allows surgeons to make two parallel incisions simultaneously, particularly helpful when excising scars. “After the first cut, tissue relaxes, making the second incision harder,” he says. “The double scalpel eliminates that struggle.”
Beyond surgery, he has designed the facilitated medicine dispensing tray, a patient-friendly system with pre- and post-prandial cabinets marked with intuitive symbols and a red-light alert when supplies run low. His graduated lipo homogeniser, with a variable aperture system, refines the fat grafting process by producing uniform macro, micro, or nano fat while permitting mechanical separation of mesenchymal stem cells. He has also created a double retractor that minimises the need for multiple assistants and a rib cartilage harvester that enables retrieval of costal cartilage through a tiny incision, dramatically reducing postoperative scarring.
While Dr Bajwa’s innovations circulate internationally, recognition has followed him across continents. He has delivered 54 presentations in the United States, United Kingdom, Germany, Japan, Singapore, France, Colombia, South Africa and more. His work on Stem Cell Therapy for Skin Pigmentation earned acknowledgment at the 2023 International Society of Aesthetic Plastic Surgery (ISAPS) meeting in Greece, as well as an award for his work on Dermogenesis in Acne Scars 2025 in Singapore.
He has been invited as a roundtable career counselor for American residents at the American College of Surgeons (ACS) in Chicago. He has been picked as a jurist to serve at the Aesthetic Medical World Award (AMWC) in Monaco in March 2026.
In parallel with his international engagements, Dr Bajwa’s daily reality remains rooted in the intense environment of Pakistan’s largest burn centre. ‘We receive sixty to seventy patients every day—from all provinces, all backgrounds,’ he says. The Jinnah Burn & Reconstructive Surgery Centre houses 94 beds, separate male, female, and paediatric wards, and a fully equipped burn ICU. Acute flame burns, domestic and workplace injuries, old burn deformities, and reconstructive challenges dominate its caseload.
‘All treatment and medicines are completely free. The government funds the hospital, and we focus on holistic correction—birth defects, trauma, skin cancers, and any visible deformities.’
The centre handles emergencies around the clock and also manages a heavy load of cold or elective cases, often resulting in waiting periods of two to three months.
