About John Reinisch

A board-certified plastic surgeon and graduate of Harvard Medical School, Dr. Reinisch’s primary clinical and research interests focus on the field of pediatric plastic surgery and congenital ear deformities (microtia). He has treated more than 20,000 children from across the country and around the world. Central to Dr. Reinisch’s work is his emphasis on minimally invasive surgeries and personal, comfortable care, as well as his assurance that his patients and their families feel relaxed and confident throughout treatment. In 1983, Dr. Reinisch founded the Division of Plastic Surgery at Children’s Hospital Los Angeles, which is now one of the busiest departments at children’s hospitals in the world. Dr. Reinisch is known worldwide for his design and development of the Medpor ear reconstruction technique. Traditionally, plastic surgeons have relied on a technique that removes cartilage from a patient’s chest and uses it to build the ear. The method, though effective, has two major limitations: It requires multiple surgeries to complete and cannot be performed until a child is 8-10 years of age - old enough to have a sufficient amount of rib cartilage. By this time, the effects of living with a deformity have often taken a toll on the child emotionally. Dr. Reinisch envisioned a new technique that would save children and their families the discomfort of multiple surgeries and the emotional distress a facial deformity can cause.