Doherty Undergoes Final Surgery

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Irish Voice News

Doherty Undergoes Final Surgery

August 29, 2008

By April Drew

THE final surgery to give a young Donegal man a new face took place on Monday, August 25 at Mount Sinai Hospital in Manhattan.

Alan Doherty, 18, spent over five hours in surgery under Dr. Elliott Rose. The surgery, which started at 8 a.m. and ended at 1:45 p.m., “went beautifully,” said Rose.

The only change that occurred mid surgery was that a previous surgically placed small chin implant was removed to avoid risk of infection.

“Fortunately the area was filled with the patient’s own tissue,” said Rose on Monday.

Although all of Doherty’s surgeries are complete, it is a possibility that oral and maxillofacial surgeon Dr. Alex Greenberg, who has worked with the Donegal man since the beginning, may insert another chin implant at a future date before Doherty is due to go home in September.

Doherty was born without a jaw and lower half face. His condition is called Otofacial Syndrome. It is a very rare congenital deformity; there is only evidence of one other case like it in the world.

On Monday, Doherty underwent his final facial contouring surgery during which Rose sculpted his neck, jaw line and reconstructed his lower lip and teeth. Rose and his team have used CT scans and “space age” imaging to design and rebuild Alan’s face outside of the operating room.

His first operation occurred on June 11, 2007. Part of Doherty’s hip-bone was placed in his back where it was surrounded by nerves and nourishment.

On October 17 Doherty underwent a 16-hour surgery where his new jaw and lower half of his face was created.

Doherty’s last major surgery was on June 18 of this year. This surgery provided a more definitive shape and form to his lower face and jaw.

It entailed insertion of internal slings to support his lower lip and chin as well as extensive sculpturing of his facial soft tissue and insertion of a custom pre-fabricated artificial chin implant to achieve near normal facial contours

Doherty, who can’t speak, types what he wants to say into a voice generated computer that he carries around his neck at all times. Doherty, who participated in the Physically Challenged Irish and American Youth Team in 2006, met with New York attorney and director of the organization William Broderick who over the course of a few months helped Doherty realize his dream of a new face was a possibility. A year and a half later, Doherty will return to Ireland with a completely new face, something he told the Irish Voice in the past was a “dream come through.”

Doherty, who was recovering from his surgery on Tuesday, was unavailable for comment.

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