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TAKING THE LEAD IN ATRESIA REPAIR - Article from California Ear Institute January 2007 Newsletter
- Click here to download article (Adobe PDF) -
- Click here to download January 2007 newsletter (Adobe PDF) -
In 2006 the California Ear Institute
defined itself as a leading center for
Atresia repair. Over 60 patients from
14 states and 4 countries sought
our expertise and attended the 3rd
Annual “Surgical Options for Atresia
and Microtia” conference where
they heard first hand from the most
experienced surgeons in the world
about how they could benefit from a
highly specialized surgical procedure
known as “Atresia Repair.” Atresia is
the absence of an ear canal. Usually,
children with Atresia have normal
inner ear hearing structures. Often
the atresia repair results in the
child being able to achieve normal
levels of hearing without the use of
amplification. CEI surgeons perform
the largest number of atresia repair
surgeries in the Western United
States.
Our appeal to children and families
from across the United States and
from across the globe is the panel
of experts we are proud to work
alongside. Frequently, an outer ear
malformation called Microtia
is associated with Atresia, and a
series of surgeries must be carefully
coordinated for optimal results.
CEI has worked for over 20 years
in tandem with Dr. Burt Brent and
Dr. John Reinisch in performing
both major approaches to outer ear
reconstruction for affected children
and adults. Technological advances
now mean that surgery can start as
early as age 3, rather than waiting
until age 8-10 as was necessary as
recently as fifteen years ago. This
provides the benefit of being able to
fully restore a child’s hearing and
correct the outer ear deformity before
a child begins kindergarten.
Patients with atresia have benefited
from the efforts of the Let Them
Hear Foundation’s Insurance
Advocacy Program. Frequently,
insurers attempt to restrict which
surgeons they will pay for or claim
that the surgery is cosmetic in an
attempt to reduce costs, resulting in
much poorer results to patients. The
Advocacy program provides appeal
services free of charge to patients
whose insurance companies have
denied coverage. The program has
been 100% successful in all Atresia
repair appeals thus expanding the
number of individuals who can
benefit from this procedure and who
seek our medical expertise.
In 2007 we expect even greater
growth in the number of Atresia
repair surgeries performed at our
center. With patients from Korea,
China, Mexico, and Canada in 2006
our expectation seems promising.
We look forward to serving and
improving the lives of individuals
with Atresia and Microtia in the
coming year.
For more information on Atresia
and Mictrotia or the Advocacy
program, please visit our websites,
www.californiaearinstitute.com and
www.letthemhear.org.
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