For Immediate Release

NEW JERSEY SURGEON RESTORES DIAPHRAGM FUNCTION TO 43-YEAR OLD PATIENT AFTER TEN-YEARS OF BREATHING PROBLEMS

First Known Case in which Nerve Decompression Stimulates Movement in Phrenic Nerve

SHREWSBURY, NJ – June 24, 2009 –The Plastic Surgery Center today announced that Dr. Matthew Kaufman restored breathing function to a 43-year old man who suffered from paralysis in the diaphragm for over ten years.

In the first known case of its kind, Dr. Kaufman utilized a rare procedure known as phrenic nerve decompression, in which he removed scar tissue from the site of a prior injury.  By releasing pressure caused by the scar tissue, the phrenic nerve, which controls movement in the diaphragm, had the space to resume function.

“We are very pleased with the outcome of this rare procedure, particularly considering that reversing paralysis from an old injury is extraordinarily unusual and this patient endured breathing paralysis for over a decade,