Philanthropy

About Our Funding

Our research is funded by the National Institutes of Health, the United States Department of Veterans Affairs, the Jean Perkins Foundation, Bernard G. Sarnat Endowment for Craniofacial Biology, the Plastic Surgery Foundation, and the American Society of Maxillofacial Surgeons. Without the generous support of our federal agencies, private foundations, and individuals, we could not do what we do.

What We Do

Our group is focused on solving real clinical problems in craniofacial surgery using our skills as scientists both in the laboratory and in the realm of quantitative clinical outcomes research.

The Craniofacial Regeneration Laboratory has made substantial progress in identifying materials fabricated based on the normal extracellular matrix that can be used to direct bone regeneration without harvesting and expanding stem cells or growth factors. The reason why this is significant is due to the safe, simple, and surgically practical nature of the solution. We are currently in the patent prosecution process of one of our second-generation materials and hope to test it in humans shortly.

Our Focus

The Craniofacial Outcomes Research Team is currently working on a multi-institutional effort for incorporating patient-reported outcomes measures for psychosocial health into standard clinical care for children with congenital craniofacial anomalies. Our major contribution to the field is the identification of subsets of craniofacial children who are at particularly high-risk for psychosocial distress including the age range of 8-10 years, children of immigrant parents, and children who have endured high numbers of surgery during childhood. Our hope is to move from identification of patients to testing of real-world solutions to alleviate their distress.

Support Our Efforts

You can donate a gift to our cause and support the continued research of our Craniofacial Research Teams. It comes through UCLA and so it is tax-deductible! Donate now.

Press Inquiries

Dr. Lee and our work have been featured by Reuters, US News, United Press International, MSN, Health Day, EurekAlert/AAAS, KABC, KCBS, KFOX, Telemundo, and others! We are happy to speak to the press. Please email Eunice Stayton at estayton@mednet.ucla.edu or call (310) 794-7616.