Dr. Percy Rossell-Perry, a practicing reconstructive surgeon at Edgardo Rebagliati Hospital of EsSalud in Lima, Peru, was introduced to ReSurge by volunteers Dr. Kirschbaum and Dr. William Carter in 1993. He learned the craft of cleft lip and palate surgeries while traveling the country with them, offering surgeries to those in need. Dr. Rossell-Perry spent the following summer of 1994 with Dr. Joe Rosen on his first surgical trip.
Since that time, Dr. Rossell-Perry has been a wonderful ReSurge partner. He recalls a particular lady in Huaraz, Peru. She was homeless and lived on the streets begging for her livelihood. He noticed she was always covering her face because of a severe defect due to a leishmania infection. She could not eat or speak well because her mouth was totally exposed. Dr. Rossell-Perry’s team had the opportunity to conduct two surgeries. She is now no longer living on the street, but instead living well and has a job. Her life was changed, but if you ask Dr. Rossell-Perry, it’s his life that has benefited.
“I thought that through reconstructive surgery I was going to change the lives of many people, but now I can say that ReSurge changed my life by allowing me to help so many people during all this time,” said Dr. Rossell-Perry. “ReSurge supported my professional development providing me training and economical support in partnership with Smile Train Foundation. This is a great benefit.”
Unfortunately, COVID-19 has had a devastating effect on Dr. Rossell-Perry’s ability to help many in need.
“This is a very difficult time for everybody and the impact on health and the economy is great,” he reports. “Many children in need of elective surgeries have been deprived. Health systems of many countries like Peru were not in a condition to respond to the medical demand arising in this pandemic. I am not providing cleft surgeries since last March and I have 150 patients with clefts waiting for surgeries at my private practice including a similar number at my hospital.”
The pandemic has not stopped Dr. Rossell-Perry. He recently published two papers in PRS Global Open Journal about primary cleft rhinoplasty.
- The Surgical Nasoalveolar Molding: A Rational Treatment for Unilateral Cleft Lip Nose Deformity and Literature Review
- Rotational Composite Flap Technique for Primary Incomplete Cleft Nose Deformity
He points out that even today many surgeons defer nasal surgery until adulthood. He argues, however, that the psychological impact of the deformity is great for these children during infancy and adolescence. He believes an optimal primary cleft nasal repair is mandatory and should be provided to the patients in order to prevent psychological consequences which can be very difficult to correct and address later in life. The techniques recently published discuss the positive nasal outcome in these patients.
We appreciate the dedication of Dr. Rossell-Perry and his team! We look forward to supporting his efforts for years to come!
