Endo or CVR?

[momtocullen]

Hi -
My son is 3 weeks old and was recently diagnosed with Metopic. Last week we met with a plastic surgeon at Children's Hospital in Boston who diagnosed his metopic as "pretty severe", and recommended the CVR at 8 months of age. Next week we're meeting with the neurosurgeon at Children's, who we believe will recommend the endoscopic. We've spoken by phone/email to a number of other plastic surgeons and neurosurgeons. It seems like all the plastic surgeons (who do not take part in the endoscopic procedure) believe patients should wait for the CVR (and believe aesthetically it's much more successful), and the neurosurgeons recommend the endoscopic. I'm wondering what you all think are the pros and cons of each procedure, and what your experiences have been with each.

Any help in making our decision would be greatly appreciated!!

Thanks a lot,

Kathy

[charliesmummy]

My Son just had CVR/FOA so i suppose im bias. His had amazing immediate results, if you want to see take a look at my home page x

[frankiesmom]

I believe sometimes endo, end up having cvr later, not sure. We had cvr, nothing else discussed, it went very well. I would think if he is severe that CVR/foa would be a better option but check all your options and go with your gut.

xoxo

[marisajo]

Kathy,

My son's facility did both procedures and his ns recommended against endoscopic because of the severity of my son's metopic. He just didn't feel like we'd get enough rounding or get the eyes spaced as much as they needed to be. I felt fairly confident with his opinion since they did do both kinds of surgeries. Even with the CVR, we did not get enough rounding of the forehead, and opted to do a cranioplasty to further round (he had some spots that didn't close, so we were facing the second surgey anyway.) I do know some people have done endo for metopic and been very happy with the results.

I think alot depends on finding a surgical team that you feel comfortable with. All kids heal differently, so there is no telling who the "lucky" few are who will need a second surgery with either procedure. Most of us just "know" when we meet the team that ends up doing surgery. There's no right or wrong answer, so we spend alot of time second-guessing if we made the right one. I don't think the complications are much greater for one vs the other. My son's cranioplasty was done endoscopically, and the facial swelling was still really bad, though it subsided quicker. The hospital stay was shorter and there was no blood transfusion.

Sorry...I don't think I've been much help!

[Candice]

My daughter is a sagittal case. She ended up with the CVR and we are so pleased with the results. I'm with the other's that if the case is severe, a CVR may lower the risk of needing a second operation later on down the road. Then again, I'm no doctor, just my opinion!:icon_mrgr