Curriculum Components
Approximately three-quarters of the fellow’s time is spent at Dell Children’s Medical Center of Central Texas, our Level 1 pediatric facility. Fellows participate in weekly multidisciplinary clinics in cleft lip/palate/airway, craniofacial and pediatric plastic surgery. Vascular anomalies clinic (also multidisciplinary) are held monthly. Pediatric operative experience is from two to three days per week. Conferencing includes craniofacial, treatment planning, morbidity and mortality, journal club, neuro-oncology and pediatric grand rounds. Craniofacial didactics are held biweekly. Additionally, the fellow is responsible for giving one grand rounds during the academic year.
One-quarter of the fellow’s time is spent at our adult Level 1 Trauma Center, Dell Seton Medical Center. During this time, which is interspersed with the pediatric experience, fellows participate in adult craniofacial clinic including trauma, orthognathic surgery, craniofacial tumors, and head and neck reconstruction with microsurgery. Operative experience is two to three days per week. The fellow participates in one weeklong humanitarian mission to perform cleft lip/palate surgery in a developing country.
Research
The program offers both clinical and basic science research opportunities through the fellowship hospitals and The University of Texas at Austin. We have several ongoing clinical Institutional Review Board-approved studies. The fellow is encouraged to initiate clinical research and/or may join an existing clinical project. The Departments of Biomedical Engineering and Genetics at UT Austin offer basic science research opportunities, and several joint protocols are in development. Fellows are expected to participate in research, produce a minimum of one publication and present research at regional and/or national meetings.
Fellowship Training Areas
- Cleft lip/palate care
- Alveolar bone grafting
- Orthognathic surgery
- Craniofacial distraction osteogenesis
- Craniosynostosis
- Craniofacial syndromes
- Le Fort procedures
- Monobloc advancement
- Skull base tumors
- Craniofacial reconstruction/microsurgery
- Vascular anomalies
- Tissue expansion and general reconstruction
- Autologous and Medpor ear reconstruction
- Facial trauma
- Secondary traumatic deformities
- Head/neck cancer reconstruction
- Craniofacial reconstruction/microsurgery
- Orthognathic surgery