Each Day, Plastic Surgeons Are Reconstructing Lives: Restoring Function, Improving Appearances, and Elevating S...( ARLINGTON HEIGHTS Ill. May 19 --...),Health

ARLINGTON HEIGHTS, Ill., May 19 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Plastic surgeons performed more than five million reconstructive procedures in 2007 -- ranging from repairing dog bite wounds and birth defects to removing tumors and reconstructing breasts following mastectomy.

(Photo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20080519/DC22812 )

Who are these people? What happened to them? How has reconstructive surgery changed their lives?

On average, members of The American Society of Plastic Surgeons (ASPS) perform more than 13,600 reconstructive procedures daily, and are bringing some of these amazing and inspirational stories to light through a new educational initiative called Reconstructing Lives.

Some of the current stories include:

-- Elaine Ferri, a 51-year-old horse trainer from Arkansas who was kicked

in the face by a filly, lost her left eye and endured more than 100

bones in her face being shattered. Her plastic surgeon, Steven Chidyllo,

MD in concert with the Jersey Shore University Medical Center, is

providing her care on a pro bono basis.

-- Daniel Bocca, a nine-year-old little leaguer from Long Island who was

found to have a tumor on his jaw while undergoing a routine dental

x-ray. His surgeon, Joseph Disa, MD, was able to graft bone from

Daniel's leg to his jaw, allowing him to return to his two great

loves -- playing baseball and rooting for the Mets.

-- Marie Gebrewold, a 27-year-old nursing student in Washington, D.C. whose

broken jaw (a result of falling out of bed at six-months old) went

untreated for more than a quarter century. The misaligned jaw will

finally be corrected by Stephen Baker, MD, and with renewed

self-confidence, Marie hopes to move into the public side of nursing.

ASPS is p
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