Dr. Donald Nuss - APSA Robert E. Gross Award

The APSA Robert E. Gross Award for Excellence in Pediatric Research and Achievement recognizes a seminal contribution by an individual who has made a major impact on pediatric surgery. His or her contributions have resulted in a major change in how pediatric surgeons manage a particular problem, and the results have been demonstrated to be durable with time and widely accepted by pediatric surgeons as "standard practice." The Award was created by the APSA Board of Governors and is presented at their discretion.

Visit www.CHKD.org to learn more about Children's Hospital of the King's Daughters.

[ambermac]

Just a little bit unrelated, but Dr Nuss performed surgery on me when I was 12 years old (1990) for a pilonidal cyst at the bottom of my spinal cord. I was in SO MUCH pain! I couldn’t sit, stand, walk, or even crawl without feeling like I was going to pass out from the pain.

When Dr Nuss saw me on President’s Day that year, he cleared his schedule and prepared for surgery right away! I was so impressed by his care.

Fast-forward to me waking up in recovery and I was on a bad drug trip from all the pain killers they had to give me. I legitimately thought I was dying. I was told that during surgery, in which I was completely under anesthesia, I was kicking and screaming from the pain. I don’t remember any of it, thank goodness. Nurses said what I went through was worse than childbirth pain!! Dr Nuss told my mom the cyst around the bottom of my spinal cord was the size of a baseball, and the affected area was the size of a basketball. When they cut me open, it just kept draining and draining. Apparently it was so bad, they cleaned it out as best as possible, then scheduled the sac to be removed a few months later.

The pain relief was immediate and I was so grateful to Dr Nuss and the team at CHKD who took care of me. I don’t remember the anesthesiologist’s name, but I remember he had pretty eyes. 😂

It took me a very long time to heal because of off-and-on again tunnel infections. But finally at age 21, the skin completely closed up and I haven’t had any drainage since. I’m now 46 years old, and I still remember Dr Nuss to this day. 💖 If you ever read this Dr Nuss, thank you. I truly believe you saved my life that day in 1990!