Operation Leaves Garden Valley Mom Smiling

A 12-year-old Garden Valley boy underwent the second half of complex facial surgery on Tuesday to correct a rare syndrome that has prevented him from smiling.

Ryan Coburn came through the surgery at Toronto’s Hospital for Sick Children with an optimistic prognosis, his mother, Patty Coburn, said. Dr. Ronald Zuker, a specialist who has successfully operated on about a dozen similar patients, transplanted muscle tissue from the boy’s leg to the left side of his face, mirroring the procedure he performed on the right side of Ryan’s face last May.

The Coburns will remain in Toronto until Tuesday, when they plan to return to Idaho with Ryan for the remainder of his recuperation.

Ryan was born with Moebius syndrome, a rare neurological disorder that causes eye muscle and facial paralysis.