Dr. Kelly Ellen Kafka, MD

Expert Publications

• Evaluation and Testing of Junctional Tourniquets by Special Operation Forces Personnel: A Comparison of the Combat Ready Clamp and the Junctional Emergency Treatment Tool.

Media Releases

Get to know General & Plastic Surgeon Dr. Kelly Ellen Kafka, who serves patients in San Antonio, Texas.

Specializing in general surgery and plastic surgery, Dr. Kafka is affiliated with Brooke Army Medical Center, the United States Army’s premier medical institution. 

Located on Fort Sam Houston, Texas, Brooke Army Medical Center is a 425-bed academic medical center. It is the Department of Defense’s largest facility and only Level 1 Trauma Center, as well as home to the Center for the Intrepid. Brooke Army Medical Center is staffed by more than 8,000 dedicated soldiers, airmen, sailors, civilians, and contractors dedicated to providing outstanding care to wounded service members and the San Antonio community at-large.

In 2005, Dr. Kafka graduated with her medical degree from the George Washington University School of Medicine & Health Sciences. She then went on to perform her residency within the Plastic Surgery Residency Program at UT Health San Antonio Long School of Medicine, completing her training in 2019.

Passionate about her profession, she is board-certified in general surgery by the American Board of Surgery (ABS). The ABS is an independent, non-profit organization located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, founded for the purpose of certifying surgeons who have met a defined standard of education, training, and knowledge.

Under the direction of Howard T. Wang, MD, Dr. Kafka and her colleagues earned first place in the Resident Bowl on the largest stage for plastic surgery — the 2018 American Society of Plastic Surgeons meeting in Chicago on Sept. 28-30.

General surgery is a surgical specialty that focuses on abdominal contents including esophagus, stomach, small intestine, large intestine, liver, pancreas, gallbladder, appendix and bile ducts, and often the thyroid gland. General surgeons perform operations involving the endocrine system, gastrointestinal tract, liver, colon, and other major parts of the human body.

Plastic surgery is a surgical specialty involving the restoration, reconstruction, or alteration of the human body. It can be divided into two main categories – reconstructive surgery and cosmetic surgery. A plastic surgeon’s primary responsibility is performing surgical and non-surgical procedures, and they use a variety of reparative and reconstructive techniques to get the job done.

Recommended Articles

• What Is an Abdominal Hernia?

  When a piece of tissue or an organ protrudes from its normal position, the condition is called a hernia. An abdominal hernia occurs when a piece of bowel protrudes through a weak area of the abdominal walls. Muscle and tissue layers form the abdominal walls. Weak spots may arise from these layers,...

• Gastric Bypass Surgery: Can I Afford It?

  Gastric bypass surgery has become a popular weight loss procedure, and can be considered the gold standard for weight loss surgeries. However, the cost of gastric bypass surgery is sky-high, and this is one of most common factors taken into consideration ahead of surgery.In the normal digestive...

• How to Diagnose and Treat Gallstones

  Who are at risk of developing gallstones?- Obesity is one of the biggest risk factors in developing gallstones. It increases a person's overall cholesterol levels, making it difficult to maintain a completely empty bladder. - Women who are pregnant, on birth control pills, or taking hormonal...

• How to Prepare for a Laparoscopy

  OverviewLaparoscopy is a type of endoscopic procedure that will allow doctors to look inside your abdomen using a surgical telescope. The telescope is known as the laparoscope. The laparoscope is equipped with a front camera that transmits the images captured in high definition to a nearby video...

• 3 Reasons Why You Would Need a Hysterectomy

  The uterus or womb, which nurtures and gestates a growing fetus till it becomes mature enough for delivery, can also become the source of life-threatening complications that require surgical intervention. There are at least three prominent reasons why a hysterectomy (uterus removal) might be...

• What Is Hydrocele Repair?

  Hydrocele repair is a surgical process that aims to correct the swelling of the scrotum that occurs as a result of hydroceles. A hydrocele is a painless buildup of fluid around the testicles. Fluid buildup causes the scrotum and the groin area to swell. This swelling can make you uncomfortable even...