3-year-old Jayden had been battling recurrent fevers and ear pain for weeks. After multiple trips to the doctor and emergency room visits, he wasn’t getting any better.
“Jayden was sick for quite a while and no one could give me an answer. I felt like there was something more to it and took him to Nemours [Children’s Health] because I knew they could figure it out and help him,” said his mother, Kristine.
The emergency room doctors at Nemours Children’s Hospital, Florida in Orlando quickly diagnosed Jayden with mastoiditis, a bacterial infection of the mastoid bone, which is located behind the ear. The infection caused an abscess close to his brain that required surgery.
Jayden was born with bilateral microtia, a birth defect that causes the external ear to be smaller or misshapen, and in his case, caused hearing loss. He had been fitted for his first pair of hearing aids at just 6 months old.
“I want him to accept himself as he is and not worry about microtia. But if my son wants to fix it cosmetically, having [Drs.]
Pritchett and Leto Barone do the abscess surgery meant he had the option for reconstructive surgery in the future.”
Cedric V. Pritchett, MD, MPH, and Angelo A. Leto Barone, MD, are part of the interdisciplinary team at the Nemours Children’s Ear, Hearing and Communications Center (NEHCC). The center aids patients dealing with a range of issues around deafness and ear reconstruction, specifically those with ear differences, hearing loss, and communications needs.
The center opened in January 2023 and involves two areas: the Nemours Children’s Interdisciplinary Center for Comprehensive Ear Reconstruction (NICEAR) directed by Leto Barone and the Nemours Children’s Hearing Enhancement, Augmentation and Restoration Program (NHEAR), directed by Cedric Pritchett.
“Children with ear differences may have a wide range of associated problems in addition to hearing loss, this is why coordinated care is essential,” said Pritchett, pediatric otolaryngologist at Nemours Children’s, Florida. “Our specialists help children with these needs develop holistically through advanced treatments and extensive support, all in one place.”
“Microtia and all ear differences are often overlooked, but they represent a significant physical and psychological burden for these children,” said Leto Barone, craniofacial and pediatric plastic surgeon who brought his long-standing vision for the development of the center to Florida when he joined Nemours Children’s in 2022. “No two patients are the same, which is why we don’t believe in a ‘one size fits all’ approach to microtia care,” he said.
The center has strong research, educational and social components. As part of the center’s educational mission, seminars are offered to educate students, residents and family with the understanding that “knowledge is power, and allowing patient families to make a more informed decision to determine what is best for their child is foundational,” states Leto Barone. The center also hosts social events and national microtia and atresia support groups. This brings the patient families together in an effort to show each of
these children with craniofacial differences that they are not alone.
The team at its core is defined by the collaboration of otolaryngologists, audiologists and speech language pathologists. The center also provides a complementary partnership of psychology, social work, and occupational and physical therapy.
“The only reason my son is learning how to talk is because of the language therapy he’s been doing at Nemours Children’s for the last six months. It’s something I used to worry about, but I don’t have to worry anymore,” said Kristine.
“Nemours Children’s means everything to me,” she said. “They go above and beyond, it’s not like going to other hospitals. If you want someone to care for your kids like you do — the right choice is Nemours. You feel like family,” Kristine said.
To learn more or to schedule an appointment visit Nemours.org/earcenter or call 407.650.7715.