I will never know what it feels like to have a child with microtia, but as a physician who has been treating this condition as the majority of my practice since 2005, I believe that I have a unique perspective to share with microtia families.

Microtia is rare. There are very few surgeons who competently treat this condition. Among those that do, there are often strong and differing opinions. It is very challenging for parents to wade through all of the confusing and conflicting information.

This website was created specifically for those with microtia and their loved ones. It is not a typical medical website. It is intended to feel more like an honest conversation with a friend, based on my experience, rather than a professional medical lecture. It is certainly biased toward my opinions, but I make a concerted effort to support those opinions with explanations and facts.

Most importantly, I AM COMMITTED TO BEING TRANSPARENT — about my surgical results and my complications.

This is the approach I would want if I were a parent of a child with microtia. However, it is often the most difficult information for parents to find. Most microtia websites avoid discussing all of the risks of surgery, the significance of each one and how complications are handled. Even though complications in my practice are rare, this is one of the most important variables for a parent to understand. It is why I have updated and published my complication rates every year since 2013 using real numbers.

Even more concerning, most microtia websites display their results omitting certain views of the ear. This does not give a true representation of the outcome; it avoids showing the ear in detail and from multiple angles. These websites also rarely display the surgical ear compared side-by-side to the natural ear. Why? One can only conclude that such images are omitted because they expose a less favorable view of the results. My gallery shows my patient’s outcomes from all angles and compared to the natural ear, so scars, skin color differences and asymmetries are clearly visible. Parents should insist on this level of transparency so they can effectively evaluate their options, and so they are prepared for, and not surprised with, the ultimate outcome.

Finally, I must extend a HUGE THANK YOU to my microtia patients and families who were so helpful in the creation  of this website. Whenever I needed photos, countless families responded. My pet peeve is seeing so many microtia websites use stock photos of children born with 2 “normal” ears. Well…NO STOCK PHOTOS here…every picture you see is of a child with microtia, and all who have had an ear surgery are my own patients. When you are evaluating a surgeon, make sure they show you their own long-term results and have their own data (not generalizations) to support their complication rates.

I have been blessed to attain my ultimate dream job—one that has allowed me to create my own little “microtia island” with the freedom to build something very special. And with this freedom–my creativity, my happiness and most importantly, my patients have flourished. I hope you enjoy the website!