As SickKids surgical backlog grows, family waits 3 years for crucial procedure – CBC

George Michelis is 1 of 698 children waiting for hypospadius surgery to repair birth defect

Nov 02, 2022

Shortly after George Michelis was born in August 2019, doctors discovered a birth defect — the opening of his urethra was located along the shaft of his penis, rather than at the tip.

While somewhat common and not life-threatening, medical experts say hypospadias should ideally be operated on within six to 18 months to correct the position of the urethra. That’s because patients can develop physical and psychological problems if it’s not treated.

George’s parents, Stefanos Michelis and Peggy Karagianis, brought him to see a specialist that November at the urology department of the Hospital for Sick Children, where they were told he was a candidate for surgery.

“They said they would get back to us with the surgery date within six months to a year,” Michelis said. “But the pandemic hit in March of 2020 and ever since then, we’ve been kind of in a black hole.”

Read more: https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/toronto/pediatric-surgical-backlog-sickkids-1.6636490