Army Pvt. Shamika Burrage almost died when she was ejected from her vehicle after a crash, losing her left ear in the process. Doctors did the unthinkable, and decided to try something that would be the first of its kind…growing her a new ear, in her body. The surgeons used the soldier’s own cartilage from her ribs, with no prosthetic needed. An ear was reconstructed and “grown” under the skin of her right forearm, according to the Army. The statement made by the U.S. Army also said Burrage will also have feeling in her new ear once rehabilitation is complete.
This procedure was not only complicated, but is the first of its kind.
