Would you get this surgery for your child?

[RachelEllen]

We're wrestling with this, and I'm curious about other perspectives. Our 2 year old daughter was born with cutis aplasia. Basically, for her, this is a silver dollar sized, scarred bald spot on the back of her head. Because of the way it forms, her hair cowlicks away from it, so it can't easily be covered up.

We saw a plastic surgeon when she was younger and he said he could do a procedure to fix it when she was 3. (If they do it sooner, the scar just stretches with head growth and you are back to a similar problem.)

What do folks think? The risk of surgery and anethesia is really, really small. But, it's also just a cosmetic problem. If we're going to do it, I'd rather do it when she is young and won't remember and before kids start teasing.

 

[Jeniferdwn]

honestly, I would do it, children are so mean and they will make fun of her. She will be embarrased. The younger they are, the less they will remember it!

 

[The Mystery Machine]

Yea, I suppose I would since this will be a thing that will incite teasing among her peers and you have the power to correct it.

 

[wdwmom0f3]

honestly, I would do it, children are so mean and they will make fun of her. She will be embarrased. The younger they are, the less they will remember it!

I could not have said it better myself. I would do it in a heart beat.

 

[dislaney]

Probably yes. I do think kids can be very cruel.

 

[jeepgirl30]

I am pretty against plastic surgery. I would never get a baby's ears pierced (my choice, not judging those who do). I don't like seeing 1st graders with highlights. However, in this case I would do it.

My first thought was maybe wait until she can decide but as the PP said, kids are cruel. If they didn't tease her about her hair they would tease her for the surgery. If you get it done early she won't remember and neither will anyone else.

 

[indimom]

YES, I would do it.
I have a 13yo DD and if she had this condition, she would want it fixed. I'm confident her every waking thought at school would be is it showing? Maybe she could style her hair to cover it, but it would stress her out.
As adults, we know this isn't a big deal or the end of the world and surgery is a big deal to fix a little thing.
But, as a teen all she is going to care about is how she looks.
I'd rather do it early than wait until she is upset over it and asks to have it fixed.

 

[golfgal]

Yes I would do it. Yes, there are risks with any surgery but for something like this it is an overall "minor" procedure.

 

[Lisa loves Pooh]

honestly, I would do it, children are so mean and they will make fun of her. She will be embarrased. The younger they are, the less they will remember it!

MTE

 

[elcodfish]

DO IT! I am 29 and have had over 20 year surgeries which have caused some major scarring and thin hair or bald spots behind my ear, I have to be careful about hairstyles so they don't show. Luckily, I was never teased but I was always paranoid...

 

[princessmom29]

I would do it in a heartbeat, nad while she is still small. It i relatively minor surgery and she will thank you for it later.

 

[LuvOrlando]

Yes, I would.

 

[wdwmom2]

Yes, I would have the surgery done as soon as the surgeon would recommend it!

Kids can be so cruel with their teasing, it would break my heart to see my child have to go through this harrassment. If surgery could spare her this pain, I wouldn't even think twice about having it done!

 

[krcit]

Yes I would get the surgery done.

 

[momof1princess]

yes, i would do it in a heartbeat. kids are SO cruel....my DD was teased for MONTHS a couple years ago when she cut her hair short. it was such a cute haircut, but she was teased so badly, she had to go to the school counselor, who then had a talk with the culprits (this solved the problem for the most part, but not completely).

 

[cabanafrau]

If my child were healthy & had no unusual risks to having surgery, yes, I would have it done while she is young.

 

[midas]

I would do it too, but I would make sure a pediatric surgeon does it or that this surgeon has operated on children in the past. I would also prefer it be done in a Children's Hospital if possible because of the anesthesia. Just to further minimize the risks.

 

[minkydog]

I am just imagining how big this thing will be when she's 15 or so. No question in my mind, my daughter would be getting that fixed. it might be different if it was on her butt, but it's in an easy to see place.

 

[mommasita]

Yes, without a doubt.

When my son was born with a club foot, we went through many processes of casting/bracing, for 18mths. At that time, they deemed it a success. There was a small "optional" procedure for his leg, which would prevent any enormous amount of size difference. I was NO NO NO, and DH talked me down, saying that if there is something we can do to help him, and alleviate kids, life being so hard, then we have to do it.

Today at 14, I am very happy we had it done. It was not easy, and as his Mom, I still see a size difference, but nobody else can.

to you .

 

[DisneyBamaFan]

Yes, I would do it.