QVH has the UK’s first and largest expert facial palsy service, treating palsy and paralysis patients from across the country.
The award-winning, multi-disciplinary team is led by a consultant plastic surgeon and includes a consultant maxillofacial surgeon, consultant oculo-plastic surgeon, psychological therapists, specialist physiotherapist and speech and language therapists. Together they use new techniques and expertise to re-animate the face which are simpler, more effective and less traumatic than traditional methods.
Specialist interests: Facial reanimation/restoration and supermicrosurgery
Mr Ruben Kannan is an award-winning consultant plastic surgeon with a doctorate in nanotechnology from University College London and additional diplomas in head and neck surgery as well as legal medicine. He gained entry onto the GMC Specialist Register in Plastic Surgery in 2012 and has completed fellowships in facial reanimation, reconstructive microsurgery, and aesthetics, with advanced training in super-microsurgery (Japan), migraine surgery (USA) and Bell’s palsy surgery (USA).
Having been a consultant in the NHS since 2013, he joined the facial palsy unit at QVH in 2016: the largest and most advanced facial palsy service in the UK. The team treats the most difficult and complex Bell’s palsy patients throughout the country. In 2018 alongside QVH maxillofacial surgeons, he jointly performed the world’s first free tissue transfer for chewing function at QVH. His innovations focus on restoring not only an optimal facial appearance but function as well. Mr Kannan’s defining policy is to restore maximal function with minimalistic surgery: a combination of aesthetic restoration and super-microsurgery (surgery in the sub-1mm realm). These include the Motor End-Plate Innervation (MEPI) concept, the early management of both flaccid and non-flaccid facial palsy, chimeric vascularised nerve flaps, Fibonacci-sequence flaps, ultrasound-guided Botox injections and intra-oral vascularised nerve grafts.
Mr Kannan is a recognised trainer for the prestigious national head and neck surgery TIG fellowship programme at QVH and hosts many international visitors and fellows at QVH. During COVID, he and his colleagues helped QVH set up telemedicine consultation portals for facial palsy patients nationwide. This allows the best care for facial palsy patients, in the comfort of their homes.
Mr Kannan is a full member of the Sir Charles Bell Society and is on the medical advisory board of Facial Palsy UK, and a council member for the Royal Society of Medicine (Plastic Surgery section). He is an expert for the International Microsurgery Club, in addition to being a founder-member of the UK Cranial Nerve Network, the first network of specialists in the world, dedicated to the management of cranial nerves. Mr Kannan is a good listener and seeks to customise treatment on an individual basis, based on discussions with his patients. This allows him and his colleagues to not only rebuild the face but restore some or all its function such as movement, sensation, and the ability to chew; continuing to build on the legacies of both McIndoe and McLaughlin at East Grinstead.
Mr Charles Nduka
Consultant Plastic Surgeon
Specialist interests: Facial and breast surgery
Mr Charles Nduka joined Queen Victoria Hospital in 2000 as a Senior House Officer and returned in 2004 as part of his Specialist Registrar programme.
He undertook his surgical training in London teaching Hospitals including the Royal London & St Bartholomew’s Hospital, Charing Cross and Hammersmith Hospitals. He completed his specialist training at the Royal Marsden Hospital. He won the McGregor Gold medal for the Royal College of Surgeons Final Fellowship prize, and one of his research projects won the Hackett prize from the British Association of Aesthetic Plastic Surgeons.
He undertook further specialist training in France, Brazil and London where he learned modern aesthetic surgery and advanced techniques for facial reanimation following facial paralysis.
Mr Nduka became a Consultant Plastic Surgeon in October 2005 and in April 2006 was appointed as Consultant at QVH. Mr Nduka is a fully accredited specialist in plastic surgery and he is full member of the British Association of Aesthetic Plastic Surgeons (BAAPS). Mr Nduka is also Honorary Senior Lecturer at Imperial College, London where he researches techniques to improve outcomes in plastic surgery of the face and breasts.
Mr Nduka established the facial palsy service at QVH in 2007 which is a multidisciplinary team comprising specialist facial therapy, psychology and surgery. He maintains an active research interest, particularly in aesthetics, facial aging and facial expression analysis, with many papers published. He is particularly interested in the psychological impact of appearance and surgery.
Mr Nduka co-founded Facial Palsy UK, an organisation which supports people with facial palsy, and is publishing a series of books on facial expressions and health
Use NHS 111 Online ahead of the bank holiday weekend and busy period of industrial action
During the Easter bank holiday and planned industrial action by junior doctors (7am 11 April to 7am 15 April), people are urged to use services wisely.
This includes NHS 111 Online for non-emergency healthcare.
Our team is contacting some patients with planned appointments or surgery during the period of the planned industrial action. If we do not call you, please attend as normal.
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