Dunia, 8, is set to
undergo a rare and complicated surgery at a Long Island hospital that will use
tissue and muscle from his forearm to recreate both lips. The hope is that he
will once again be able to open and close his mouth, and eat and talk normally.
Dunia Sibomana was attacked
by a group of chimpanzees as he played with 2 other boys near a preserve in
their native Democratic Republic of the Congo. Dunia, unlike the others,
survived. But he was severely disfigured: His lips ripped off and one cheek
torn apart, leaving him with muscle damage that make it hard for him to eat,
swallow and communicate.
Dr. Leon Klempner, an
associate professor of dentistry at Stony Brook Children's Hospital, where
Dunia will undergo the operation, said: 'As you can imagine, not having any
lips, the food can just come right out.
'He drools all the time
and can't pronounce different words.'
Dunia had also stopped
going to school because the other children in his native Congo ridiculed
him.
Monday's planned
eight-hour procedure will be the first of three major operations for Dunia, who
was brought from the Congo in November with the help of the non-profit
foundation Smile Rescue for Kids.
Dr. Alexander Dagum, the
hospital's chief of plastic and reconstructive surgery, said he believes there
are only three other documented cases where the same surgery has been
performed. The hospital is covering the cost of the surgery and the doctors
have all donated their time.
Since the attack two years
ago, which killed Dunia's four-year-old brother and a young cousin, Dunia has
been the target of bullies and become shy and withdrawn.
In his short time in the
United States, he has been living with a host family on Long Island, attending
elementary school and learning English in addition to his native Swahili.
Appearing for an interview
with this doctors on Monday, Dunia, buried himself in video games on a tablet
and colored with markers. He occasionally stuck his tongue out at the doctors
as they explained the procedure.
Klempner said: 'We're
feeling very optimistic. We're hoping after the surgery he'll reintegrate into
society and perhaps go back to school or have some semblance of a normal life.'
Culled from UK Daily Mail
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