Doctors at Shaarei Tzedek Medical Center have restored the ear of a man who lost half of his ear in a work accident by combining artificial cartilage and transferring tissue from his body with innovative technology.
A 55-year-old man arrived at the emergency department at Shaare Zedek Medical Center after being injured while working in a carpentry shop due to a wooden object falling on him and causing the loss of the upper half of his ear.
The emergency physicians made a quick attempt to save the ear by stitching the stump into place, but the stump did not receive a sufficient supply of blood and it was decided to perform a reconstruction using the most innovative approach available today.
After consultation, the doctors of the plastic surgery department at the hospital decided to perform a unique reconstruction with advanced technology using a cartilage replacement made of alloplastic material that is adapted in size to the injured ear's opposite ear and covered with tissue transferred from the scalp and skin.
"At first I did not feel the lack of an ear, I thought it was a bleeding cut. I took a rag and pressed so that it would not continue to bleed. When I got to the emergency room, the extent of the damage became clear. The ear was cut in half," the patient said. "I asked the carpentry shop owner to quickly bring the stump to the medical center. It took a while, but eventually the missing half was found."
Dr. Yoav Gronovich, director of the Department of Plastic Surgery at Shaare Zedek Medical Center, who performed the surgery together with the department's team of doctors, explains that this is a case of severe trauma to a young man who required attention to both the functionality and final aesthetic appearance of his ear.
"The chances of returning the stump to its place are extremely low," said the department director. ''However, our team of doctors nevertheless tried to do this, and after the restoration of the stump was unsuccessful, we decided to perform a complex reconstruction using an alloplastic component that will serve as a basis for reconstruction and as a replacement for cartilage. It is a material that is also used in restorations of the scalp and bones in the face. The main advantage of this material is that it can be obtained in a perfect fit to the opposite ear."
The cartilage replacement is imported from the USA. In a complex operation, it is connected to the existing remnant of cartilage and covered with two layers of soft tissue - one is covering tissue from the scalp, and the other is skin in a very thin layer taken from the leg and which is intended to cover the tissues and preserve the unique contour of the ear. The surgery allowed the employee a full recovery and a quick return to the routine of his life despite the serious injury, while obtaining a very good aesthetic result," added Dr. Gronovich.