Doctorate for medic who makes kids smile

WORLD-RENOWNED cleft lip and palate surgeon Professor Anil Madaree, who is a chief specialist and head of plastic and reconstructive surgery from the University of KwaZulu-Natal, graduated with a doctoral degree for his novel study on surgical techniques on patients in KwaZulu-Natal.

The Operation Smile medical director has been on numerous voluntary missions to treat and perform surgery on patients with cleft lip and palate and other deformities in nine sub-Saharan African countries, Mexico, the Philippines, Brazil, Nicaragua and Bolivia.

Passionate about craniofacial reconstructive surgery, Madaree was recruited by the International Red Cross to do reconstructive medical work on post-war deformities suffered by people in Africa.

According to Madaree, the epidemiology of cleft lip and palate in KwaZulu-Natal has not been previously investigated.

Based on an intensive review, Madaree conceptualised and introduced several new surgical techniques designed to repair the cleft lip and nasal deformity.

His study revealed that there were distinct epidemiological differences in cleft lip and palate patients in KwaZulu-Natal and he also introduced three new surgical techniques including a novel method of lip repair.

The first technical innovation was the use of a design termed the symmetrical philtral column repair in unilateral cleft lip which was used in 500 patients.

The second modification was to determine the indication for a two-stage repair in bilateral cleft lips and the third innovation was correction of the cleft lip nasal deformity with septal repositioning and the use of a hypodermic needle to more accurately align the anatomy of the nasal cartilages.

Apart from his volunteer work, lecturing, his clinical commitments and publishing, Madaree has served in a number of key positions including as president of the Colleges of Medicine in South Africa, president of the International Society of Craniofacial Surgeons, president of the Association of Plastic Reconstructive Surgeons of South Africa and president of the South African Burns Society.