Monday, April 20, 2009

The Amazing Bionic Julia


Julia got a little something put into her head today! I took her down for some minor surgery on her ear to be done by the very competent Dr. Brian Peterson. The astounding thing is that he put in a little prosthetic device that will serve to repair a couple of the three little bones in her right ear! What was to be a rather routine removal of a cyst, revealed that Julia had had a malformation in her first and second ear bones and that the cyst (the diagnosis had the root “mastoid” in it) had grown around these little bones. The third bone was vibrating just fine, but it was all alone in its work. Dr. Peterson also repaired her eardrum. He said that she had been born this way and that likely she had never been able to hear well in her right ear. He did add that it wasn’t necessarily something Ali and Sophia could inherit. It was just something that happens. This should make it so that she hears somewhat better though he doubts that she’ll ever hear perfectly.


It’s amazing that not only can the doctor repair it on the spot, but can install something as amazing as a little prosthetic device without any advance notice. Isn't this a little step on the way to replacing even more vital body parts, like lungs and hearts, off the shelf of the operating room? Maybe?


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