Xiaolian, a Chinese man, has a nose that grew on his forehead.
The nose is being transplanted to replace his current nose, which isn’t in as good shape, reports Reuters.
The man, identified by one name only and 22 years old, “his nasal trauma following a traffic accident on August, 2012,” Reuters reported.
“After several months, the infection had corroded the cartilage of the nose, making it impossible for surgeons to fix it leaving no alternative but to grow a new nose for replacement. The new nose is grown by placing a skin tissue expander onto Xiaolian’s forehead, cutting it into the shape of a nose and planting a cartilage taken from his ribs.”
The surgeons told local media in Fuzhou, Fujian province that the new nose is in good shape and transplant surgery could be performed soon.
The procedure is called flap prefabrication, which is a new technique in plastic surgery, reports the Daily Mail.
Surgeons are taking skin and cartilage from Xiaolian’s ribs and moving ti up to his forehead, waiting for the blood supply to grow in. Then they'll take the skin and cartilage from his forehead to do the nasal reconstruction.
