50/50

What do you do when given a success rate 50/50?

To have to make a decision that will forever change your appearance.

And changing that appearance is your child.

This isn't a simple appearance change either.

It could involve up to 3 surgeries.

It isn't life theatening, so it doesn't have to be done.

But for Katie.....

She wants ear fixed. 

Before she wanted it fixed so she could wear an earring in it again and didn't really care if she got an ear the same size as her other ear, she just wanted an earring in it.

Now she is also saying she wants to hear out of that ear because she is having some trouble.

Dave and I had hoped that she would be older before asking to have it worked on, so she could have a better understanding of the different choices there are and be more involved in picking the options as she will have to live with it.

Jenny has the same little ear like Katie, but Jenny can wear earrings in both ears.  And rarely does Jenny say she having problems with hearing, sometimes the problem is that she hears to much.

Jenny is ok with her little ear, doesn't seemed bothered by it.

Last Thursday I took both girls to the ear specialist to see what he had to say.  We saw this specialist when we first brought Katie and Jenny home.  He told us to come back sometime after they are 7 as the ear is pretty much fully grown then.

They had a CT Scan done.

Jenny's came back that her inner ear looks good and the success rate for him to be able to accurately drill the hole (the ear) to the inner ear is really good, she doesn't have deformity in the middle ear.

Katie wasn't as lucky.

She has a 50/50 chance that he can get the hole right and fix the deforms parts of her inner ear.

So the child that doesn't care one way or other right now and is content with her little ear has the best case scenrio

The child the desperately wants her ear fix and is complaining of some difficulties of hearing doesn't have very good odds.

The specialist gave us the option of a new procedure that involves putting a small metal plate by the ear and wear a magnetic thing similar to what cochlear implant people wear.  This is a lot less invasive then a cochlear implant.  This would allow her to hear better in that ear (she is classified deaf in her little ear).  But with the deformity, it could become very invasive and not be successful at all.

But it won't fix the appearance of her little ear and to wear earrings.

We have a meeting with the plastic surgeon on the 23rd.  He will be the one that performs the outer ear surgery if we decide to move ahead with this.  If we have the little ear transform into a big ear, it will take 3 surgeries to do it, if we choose to use Katie's cartlidge and skin.  The specialist told us that the ear won't be perfect, that some people's ears turn out better then others, that it depends on the rib they take, the skin grafting and so forth.  I have seen many before and after pictures, some ears look pretty good, some not so good and the not so good ones seem to be more noticable then the little ear is.

So is 50/50 worth it?

I don't know?

been doing a lot of praying,

What do you think?