Microtia Repair

Wishing our patients who are celebrating Lunar New Year a very happy and special celebration. We hope that as your usher in new light, lanterns, and other forms of illuminations to welcome the new year; may the year usher in new hopes, dreams, and abundant prosperity for you. We look forward to seeing our patients again in this year of the ox. Tag us to let us know how you’re celebrating!

Throwback to last week when Adrian and his mom came to visit us in the office. Adrian had right ear reconstruction nine weeks ago. He is doing so well and his ear is looking better everyday. Adrian is very happy with his new ear, and so are we.

What an honor to be voted as a top 30 provider at Cedars Sinai by our patients! As a surgeon, my patient’s health and well-being are my main priorities. But in addition to accurate diagnosis and treatment, I also care deeply about patient satisfaction. My team and I are dedicated to making the patient’s experience as enjoyable as possible. We know surgery can be scary. Our team strives to ease anxiety and fear by explaining the process in detail and answering all questions. I’m truly humbled and moved by this. Our goal is to always provide the best patient centered care possible.

Andrew and his family are in the office today to remove his head wrap and to check for any complications. At one or two days after surgery, we are checking for seroma (pocket of fluid) and hematoma (localized bleeding) that can sometimes happen after surgery. Thankfully Andrew had neither. Andrew was very eager to remove the ear mold to see his new ear but he will have to wait another two weeks. The mold is there to help protect and shape the ear. We will see Andrew back here soon for his big reveal.

This patient was so happy with her ear reveal today that she was posing in front of the mirror and smiling the entire visit. I was trying to keep up; but clearly she’s got me beat! We love when we can help patients feel comfortable and confident in their own skin!

Happy Holidays! So thankful to just BE...healthy, loved, laughing, and with family. Warmest wishes from our little family to yours. May you find health, happiness, and peace during the holiday season and through the coming year.

Another reveal from this week. Pictured here with my 11 year old patient from Russia who was born with left ear microtia. She is as sweet as can be. Reveal day is usually two weeks after surgery. At this visit , we remove the ear mold that was placed at the conclusion of surgery, check for wound healing, and we wash the patients’ hair in the office. We’re both very happy with the results of the surgery. Looking forward to seeing her back in the office for weekly check-ups.

Another great day in the OR! I performed microtia reconstruction on this 3 year old boy from Canada. He was born with bilateral microtia. I successfully operated on his left ear four months ago. Today we repaired his right ear. With the new lock-down going into effect, I’m uncertain how it will change my surgery schedule so I am enjoying every moment in the OR while it lasts. I feel so blessed to do this work. Stay safe everyone!

A few weeks ago we introduced you to the newest addition to our team. Today I’d like to introduce you to someone who has been working with us for almost two years and has been integral in our operations. Many of you have met or spoken to her. Tatev Tovmasyan is our program coordinator. She also helps translate for our Russian patients. Here’s how Tatev describes herself: I have been in the healthcare industry for 8 years. I have been working with Dr. Tahiri for almost 2 year...s as his program coordinator. I most enjoy the patient advocate portion of my job. It gives me immense pleasure assisting our patients to overcome physical and financial challenges to get the surgery necessary for a better quality of life. I am a new mom of a one year old boy which means my time is filled with work and play at home. It is a wonderful deal. Additionally, I am a certified counselor specializing in emotional and behavioral issues in adolescence. I love reading in my spare time which is limited now because of my child. I am a big fan of movies and books. My favorite book is The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexander Dumas and my favorite movie is Scent of a Woman starring Al Pacino.

Kicking off the week with a visit from this beautiful family. The patient is 3 year old Roman from Russia. Today is his 3.5 weeks post-op visit as well as his last in-person visit before he heads home. He underwent right ear microtia reconstruction. He’s healing very well. The swelling, color, and projection of his ear will continue to improve in the coming months. Roman’s question to me in the office was when he’ll be able to wrestle with his brother again . I told him that even though he’s recovering expeditiously, he still needs to wait four months before wrestling. It’s always a good sign when patients want to resume normal activities.

While 2020 has been a challenging year for many reasons, we’re grateful to our patients, their family, and the entire microtia community for trusting our team to provide care and be a part of their journey to better health. We appreciate our patients today and everyday. Wishing you and your loved ones a happy and healthy Thanksgiving!

In addition to microtia, I also specialize in repair of congenital craniofacial malformations. Here are some before and after pictures of a venous malformation repair of the lip. Venous malformations ‘VM’ are dilated veins or increased number of veins to an area. VM can occur anywhere in the body. Children with VM are usually born with condition. As the child grows, the abnormal vein can expand and cause discomfort. There are several treatment options for VM. In this case, ...surgical debulking was most appropriate. For this patient, I took extra care to preserve the vermilion border and shape of her lip. She is 2 weeks post-op and has healed beautifully. I’m excited for her to graduate from high school this year with a dazzling smile on her face!