KNH doctors attempt world-first facial reconstruction on 7-year-old

Kenyatta National Hospital (KNH) is preparing to carry out a pioneering facial reconstruction surgery on a seven-year-old boy who survived a bandit attack.

Specialists describe surgery as a world-first procedure.

The boy, Ian Baraka, was six years old when he sustained devastating injuries after being shot in the face during a December 2023 bandit attack in Northern Kenya.

The bullet tore through his lower jaw and exited through his mid-face, leaving him without large sections of bone and soft tissue.

“He came to us intubated, with extensive damage to his upper and lower jaw,” said oral and maxillofacial consultant surgeon, Dr Andrew Akiriumu, who has been leading the case.

“The challenge was not just to save his life, but to figure out how to give him a face again,’’ he stated.

Baraka was initially stabilised at Meru Teaching and Referral Hospital before being transferred to KNH.

Since the transfer, a large multidisciplinary team has been working on his care, involving oral surgeons, plastic surgeons, ear, nose and throat specialists, ophthalmologists, and prosthodontists from KNH and the University of Nairobi.

Given his young age, doctors ruled out heavy reconstructive surgery with harvested bone. Instead, they turned to advanced technology — titanium implants designed to expand as the boy grows

Doctors explain that the implants will be fixed on Ian’s face to give him his face structure back, but when he turns 18 years old, another surgery will be done where sections of his leg bones will be extracted and transferred to his face.

“This is revolutionary. It is the first time in the world such implants will be used in a growing child with this level of facial destruction. The implants are customised to allow Ian to feed, speak, and smile again,’’ said the prosthodontist, Dr Margaret Mwasha.

KNH Chair, Dr Abbas Gullet, said the case reflects the hospital’s critical role in advancing healthcare in Kenya and across Africa.