Julia – thank you for posting such detailed information.  I think it is important that we are as educated as possible when making this decision for our daughters.  For those of you contemplating this choice, please be sure to read the entire article.  Towards the bottom it states, “these children had surgery between 1979 and 1995. There have been changes in surgical techniques, equipment, sutures, and antibiotics since that time. More up-to-date procedures may have better outcomes, although there are few data to support this.” 

Please inquire with your surgeon on the number of surgery’s he/she has done, when was the time he/she did one, where and when they got their training on this type of surgery and so on.  You are basically interviewing the doctor for a job and there should be no limits on the questions you ask.  We even asked to speak with a few parents who recently chose to have the surgery done on their daughter.  If you are not 100% comfortable, wait, unless there is an immediate medical need.