12 year old Andres Rojas from Colombia was born without his right ear, a condition known as Microtia. Andres recently underwent an operation at North Central Baptist Hospital in Stone Oak to correct the congenital deformity. The surgery was be performed by Arturo Bonilla, M.D., a world-renowned specialist in pediatric ear reconstructive surgery.

Dr. Bonilla is one of the few pediatric ear reconstructive surgeons in the world who solely operates on children with similar ear deformities. Dr. Bonilla donated his services for free and orchestrated the same with the hospital and anesthesiologist. Ronald McDonald House gave Andres and his father a place to stay while here, and some of Dr. Bonilla’s patients, who also have ear deformities, donated money for food and other necessities.

During the four-hour operation, Dr. Bonilla harvested several pieces of cartilagefrom Andres’ ribs. He then carved, shaped and sculpted the cartilage into the shape of a new ear. The process takes four operations, so Andres will be back in December for his second surgery, but already he is thrilled with the results.









While Arturo Bonilla, M.D. is a member of the medical staff of one or more of Baptist Health System’s hospitals, he is an independent contractor who is self-employed. As a result, Dr. Bonilla is neither an employee nor an agent of those hospitals nor of Baptist Health System; and none of these hospitals nor Baptist Medical System is responsible for any actions which Dr. Bonilla takes in his medical practice.