NEW DELHI: Shilpa (name changed) was an unwanted child thrown in a dustbin by her parents, who live in Sasaram, Bihar. A lawyer from the neighbourhood spotted her and took her home. But the newborn had to live with a disfigured face for 16 years as rats ate away her nose while she was lying in the dump.

"Most people would get scared by just looking at me. I had to cover my face with a dupatta at home or whenever I would go out," said the girl, a Class IX student. She underwent a plastic surgery at a city hospital recently for reconstruction of her nose using the muscles of the forehead and rib cartilage. The cost of the treatment was borne by an NRI woman, daughter of the lawyer (now dead), who also provided financial support for her upbringing and education.

"The girl had no nose, only openings when she came to our hospital. She had no problems in breathing. Now she has an almost natural-looking nose and the face also looks much better. She is a beautiful and intelligent girl," said Dr S S Gambhir, consultant plastic surgeon , Sir Ganga Ram Hospital , where the surgery was conducted in multiple steps over a period of four months.

He added, "The biggest challenge for the reconstruction surgery was to get skin which would match with the colour of the nose to give it a near-natural look. We chose to use skin from the forehead for this. A silicon balloon was put in the forehead and inflated. Extra skin was surgically taken out and turned backwards towards the nasal area to make the nose". The doctors said in two months they had reconstructed anterior nasal spine, the thin projection of the bone, using rib cartilage.

"The surgery has been successful. It has given her a new confidence," said the lawyer's daughter, who flew from England for the surgery.

