Girl given hope of smiling, like other children

BOITUMELO Moretsele would often stand crying in front of a mirror and try to fix her lopsided smile with her fingers.

The Grade 2 Brakpan North pupil could not understand why other children ridiculed her.

For most children at Boitumelo’s age, pulling a funny face‚ smiling and frowning happens without a thought.

But not for the seven-year-old‚ who was born with a complex congenital neurological disorder – Moebius Syndrome – which has robbed her of her ability to smile.

The disorder can affect multiple cranial nerves including the facial nerve‚ which results in paralysis of the muscles that bring about facial movements.

Thanks to the Smile Foundation – a non-government organisation that helps children receive reconstructive surgery – and a team of expert surgeons‚ Boitumelo may soon be able to express her happiness and joy.

The little Gauteng girl spent almost 10 hours under the knife at the Inkosi Albert Luthuli Hospital in Durban last week.

She and eight-year-old Olwethu Diseko, of Potchefstroom‚ who has paralysis on one side of her face‚ were operated on by a team of surgeons including the Smile Foundation’s medical director‚ Dr George Psaras‚ Professor Anil Madaree‚ who heads the University of KwaZulu-Natal’s department of plastic and reconstructive surgery, and Dr Mahendra Daya‚ the university’s principal specialist.

The microscopic reconstructive surgery was part of a first-ever Smile Facial Reanimation Week‚ in which the tertiary hospital and the Smile Foundation joined forces.

Boitumelo’s parents Juliet‚ a pharmacist‚ and Happy‚ a pastor‚ said “We are so grateful to the foundation and the doctors who have given our girl the chance to smile again.

“She used come home from school crying. She would cry because she couldn’t understand why children laughed at her.

“She would stand at the mirror and try to fix her smile with her fingers.” – TimesLIVE