Noted Plastic Surgeon Dr. Samuel Rhee Directs Center for Pediatric Craniofacial Surgery
NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital/Weill Cornell Medical Center has recently welcomed Samuel Rhee, MD as Director of the new Pediatric Craniofacial Center -- a multidisciplinary program offering comprehensive treatment for deformities of the skull, face and jaw.
The Craniofacial Center, made possible by a generous gift to the Hospital from NewYork-Presbyterian trustee David H. Komansky and his wife Phyllis Komansky, provides advanced care to children with facial conditions and complex facial deformities in three main areas: congenital birth defects, trauma, and tumor or abnormal growth. The Center brings together experts in plastic and reconstructive surgery, neurosurgery, ophthalmic and oculoplastic surgery, oral and maxillofacial surgery, and otolaryngology/head and neck surgery. "I think that New York is one of the greatest places to provide healthcare," notes Dr. Rhee. "You see the most research, the most advanced practitioners, and so I feel if you want to make a difference in healthcare, particularly on the academic side, you need to be in a place where you are surrounded by experts, by specialists, by people who are advancing the field. NewYork-Presbyterian/Weill Cornell is one of these places, and I saw this position as an opportunity to collaborate with special people."
Dr. Rhee, who is also Assistant Professor of Surgery (Plastic Surgery) at Weill Cornell Medical College, attended Duke University, where he graduated cum laude in Philosophy and Biology. After graduating with honors from Duke University, he received his medical degree from Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons and completed a residency in general surgery at NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital/Columbia University Medical Center. Subsequently, he completed an NIH-funded research fellowship and residency in plastic surgery at the University of Michigan Medical Center in Ann Arbor, Michigan. Dr. Rhee worked with renowned craniofacial surgeon Dr. Henry Kawamoto, Jr. and completed a craniofacial surgery fellowship at UCLA in Los Angeles. Most recently, Dr. Rhee served as Director of Craniofacial Surgery at the New Jersey Medical School at the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey.
Making a Difference in Children's Lives
Board certified by the American Board of Plastic Surgery, Dr. Rhee's clinical expertise includes a wide range of cosmetic and reconstructive plastic surgery. "I had always been interested in pediatrics," says Dr. Rhee. "I felt you could make some of the biggest differences in patients' lives on the pediatric side. When I worked with mentors -- some of whom are now in their 70s -- they would see some of their patients grow up, finish college and go to work as professional photographers, as engineers, and so on. To see that was really rewarding, and it was something I wanted to be involved in."
Regarding his desire to pursue craniofacial surgery, Dr. Rhee explains, "The face is incredibly complicated -- it really is a window to the soul. You look at someone and you so often judge who they are by their face. You get a sense of someone's personality, of how they express themselves, by looking at their face. Yet it doesn't matter how beautiful the face is if it doesn't work. In craniofacial surgery, you work with form and function, as well as proportion and aesthetics."
A Multidisciplinary Approach to Address Complex Conditions
As director of the Craniofacial Center, Dr. Rhee brings together the full range of expertise and multiple specialists together to care for patients with complicated craniofacial issues. "The people that I interact with on a daily basis here are certainly the tops in their profession," notes Dr. Rhee. "The care that we are providing at NewYork-Presbyterian/Weill Cornell is unsurpassed -- our critical care people, neurosurgeons, pediatric anesthesiologists, our geneticists."
Each month, Dr. Rhee and his colleagues see patients together and create a plan that addresses all aspects of their overall care. "It is easy with a patient who has an overwhelming craniofacial or cleft condition to miss other issues," says Dr. Rhee. "We want to know what kind of burdens the parents are facing and how can we help them with social concerns. We may be concentrating on the mouth, but how is the child's eye development? All of these issues need to be addressed on an interactive basis -- that is really what craniofacial care is about.
"One of our overriding goals is helping parents deal with the many challenging issues that surround a child with a facial deformity," says Dr. Rhee. "We want to allow these children to reach their full potential and not be hindered by or feel that a facial deformity is a central part of their life. We want to make sure that they are as happy and healthy and normal as any child should be."
Advancing the Field
Applying the latest technologies and procedures to advance the field of craniofacial surgery, Dr. Rhee and colleague Mark M. Souweidane, MD, Director of Pediatric Neurological Surgery at NewYork-Presbyterian/Weill Cornell and Associate Professor of Clinical Neurological Surgery at Weill Cornell Medical College, are pursuing minimally invasive surgical techniques to treat craniostosis with smaller incisions and less blood loss. The premature closure or fusion of the skull bones in infants, craniostosis is a serious condition that slows or stops the growth of the skull, preventing further brain growth and contributing to developmental disabilities. A craniectomy -- the surgical procedure for removing a part of the skull, called a bone flap, to relieve intracranial pressure -- is generally required. "Typically and for most children under a year old, it is a fairly invasive surgery," says Dr. Rhee. "For some patients, however, the minimally invasive approach has shown a lot of promise. Dr. Souweidane has been a great proponent of this approach, and it is something we are going to continue to explore."
Dr. Rhee lectures frequently on craniofacial and plastic surgery across the country. He has published research on topics including serious facial injuries and distraction osteogenesis, a surgical technique used to reconstruct skull and facial bone deformities. He has a special interest in the use of biosynthetic materials in craniofacial reconstruction and the use of minimally invasive surgical techniques.
International Outreach
Dr. Rhee also regularly leads international volunteer surgical missions to countries including Bangladesh and Colombia to teach surgeons and to treat children with cleft lips, cleft palates, and other craniofacial conditions. "We can't bring all these children to the U.S. for care," adds Dr. Rhee, "but we can certainly bring the training and the technology to surgeons overseas and allow them to innovate, to develop, to treat these patients properly."
Related Links
Pediatric Surgery at Weill Cornell Medical College
Powered by Big Medium™
