This week our pediatrician at Hospital delRio saw two of our patients. First was 6 year old Angel who has a lump on his neck. Upon examination it was determined it is a benign tumor most likely cause by and infection. Dr. Niera assured mom that it will not grow and is not dangerous. Should it cause pain or problems down the line, surgery would be an option.
Next was 3 year old Domenic, referred to us by Rocio from CETAP Lucy. Domenic was having trouble breathing and getting fevers. Dr. Niera determined he has an allergic reaction to the dust and heat inside the house. We purchased some medicine and hopefully he will be fine.

This week the public hospital (Vicente Corral Moscoso) is hosting Fundacion Rostros Felices, HKIE, and ReSurge International from Stanford University Medical School to create ears for 12 children.
The team will perform 4 surgeries each day....the surgeries taking approximately 3 1/2 hours. Today we watched
Dr. Fernando Quintana Jedermann from Guayaquil and Dr Pablo Javier Salamea Molina create an ear on a 6 year old born with Microtia...a condition where the ear is barely formed. It was an amazing process to watch these two doctors take 2 pieces of rib cartilage, form them together in the shape of the child's other ear and insert it under the skin!
He will have a second cosmetic surgery to make to complete the process. These surgeons are all Michaelangelos with a scalpel!
ReSurge.org have been taking surgical teams around the world for 50 years not only performing surgeries, but also training surgeons in third world countries on the proper techniques for plastic/reconstructive procedures.

Remember our Super Bowl Party? Well, thanks to Jennifer Cory, Jim Cory, Brian Hitsky, Robin Littlepage and Brad Littlepage and all the great folks who partipated and bid on the raffle, two little girls are in the process of gaining a better life!
Yesterday Little 18 day old Angelita from Cotocachi was fitted for a mouth prosthesis by Dra Mariela Siguencia. This will enable her to eat and drink correctly until she can have her cleft lip surgery in about 3 months. Dr Pablo Salamea attended to explain the surgery process and also ordered serveral tests to evaluate her health.
Last week Dra Mariela created a prosthesis for 9 year old Sarahi from Machala.Her cleft palate had never been repaired and at 9 years old she is unable to speak. The prosthesis ( think of our old style retainers ! ) fits tight against her palate...she is beginning speech therapy and will have her palate repaired soon.
Thank you Dra Mariela Elisa Siguencia, Dr Pablo Javier Salamea Molina, Hospital del Rio and all our donors who make these little miracles happen

This past week while dropping some articles off at Hogar del Esperanza, Gary introduced us to a sweet family from Columbia who had been living under bridge for a month. He explained that three of the children, ages 11, 9 and 7 had some very bothersome dermatological issues.
We got the three into our dermatologist Dra Yadira Tapia at Hospital del Rio the following morning. After examining all three, we purchased the needed medicines (following a thorough explanation by Dra Yadira). The children will do a follow up in a couple weeks.
Thnaks to our donors and our volunteer doctors at Hospital del Rio this sweet, thankful family is on their way to a healthier life

First is 20 day old Maria Paz who has a very severe cleft lip making it impossible for her to feed adequately. Dra Mariela Siguencia of Hospital del Rio fashioned a custom prosthetic for her mouth enabling her to eat until her surgery at 3 months.
Next is little Carlitos who just completed his 10th corticoid surgery to lessen and soften his severe scarring, especially on his lower face. he will now be ready for surgery to remove the scar. More on him later.
Then we have shown Dr Juan-Carlos Salamea-Molina (Dr Pablo's brother) of Hospital del Rio with Josue Cristopher and mom before having his surgery on a private area causing him pain and infection.
All of this again made possible by our loyal supporters, the generosity of our doctors and Hospital del Rio. The children and families send a huge thank you!

This is 13 year old Rolando. When he was 4 years old, he was run over by a bus and lost both his legs. Since that time he has been confined to a wheelchair or needed to be carried.
Thanks to Prostesis Imbambura and our HKIE supporters, Rolando has been fitted with 2 full prosthetic legs. It will take him a while to learn how to walk ,but he and his family are feeling so blessed to have recieved this life changing gift!
Again, many thanks to our donors and Prostesis Imbambura.

Ok, this is a tough one to post. Just think what this family went through everyday!
This is 16 year old Karina who was born with glaucoma and lost her eyes at a very young age. As hard as it is to look at the before picture, imagine the family seeing their precious child like that. She was such an object of ridicule in her village she stopped leaving her house years ago and never attended any school.
Thanks to our supporters, Dra Mariela Elisa Siguencia and Hospital del Rio, Karina now has a new look and can now leave her house with her family. After a few months her eye socket and muscles will adjust to her new eyes and it will she will look even better.
As you can imagine, Karina's mother was overjoyed and thankful that a group of expats were willing to help her child in such a dramatic way.
Along with Dra Mariela, will be be looking for a special school for her to attend and be able to spend time with kids with other disabilities and perhaps have friends for the first time in her life!

Shown is Yesly, a 3 month old from Loja, with her mother. Yesly had a severe cleft lip; in fact Dr. Pablo Javier Salamea Molina said it was one of his more difficult cases! The family spent several days at our Emaus House to rest and ensure all was well. Thankfully this little girl will grow up without the stigma of a severe cleft lip!
Also is Juan Carlos, a 14 year old who lost both eyes to hereditary glaucoma at a very young age. Dra. Mariela Elisa Siguencia created a prosthetic eye of which he is very proud. Unfortunately we were only able to provide him with one eye, as a prosthetic in the other proved too painful. Never the less he is one happy young man, as you can see from the photo.
Thanks to Dr. Pablo, Dra Mariela, and all our HKIE supporters, two more children's lives were changed for the better.
Also, a huge thank you goes out to Hospital del Rio for providing HKIE with a signiciant discount!

Our colaboration with Exilaser continues to grow! The entire Exilaser staff are such a pleasure to work with!
This is 15 year old Cristina (also shown with her uncle and aunt). She comes from a small community outside Gualaceo of many blind and partially sighted people, mostly due to genetic problems.
When her family realized she was having headaches and poor vision, they naturally feared the worst! Fortunately, a visit and exam at Exilser showed she needed eye drops and glasses only.
Another happy HKIE and Exilaser moment.
Thank you Exilaser, Drs Miotto and Torres for your generosity with our children. And of course, thanks to all our donors who make this possible!

Another child's vision saved!
This is 15 year old Nathaly...shown with her mother and Dr. Guiseppi Miotto ( also is Dr Miotto during the Surgery).
Nathaly suffered from Keratoconus in both eyes. it is a codition in which the clear tissue on the cornea bulges outward, causing blurred vision and high sensitivity to light and glare. Today Dr. Miotto of Exilaser implanted 2 corneal rings which will flatten the cornea and thereby removing the blurred vision and light sensitivity.
Mom was crying tears of joy and thanks this morning...what a Christmas gift to Nathaly and the family! Many thanks To Dr. Miotto of Exilaser for his skill and generous heart. And of course huge thanks to our supporters who made this Christmas present possible! The gift of sight!
Also pictured is young Juan David who was born with glaucoma. HKIE has been helping with special eye drops (and a previous 2 surgeries) and his vision remains clear!