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Objective: To describe the clinical impact of recurrent short-term plastic surgical trips, to define the disability adjusted life-years (DALYs)-averted through reconstructive cleft surgery in low-resource areas, and to provide an estimate of the monetary benefit of providing reconstructive surgery in this setting using a previously published economic modeling methodology. Design: A retrospective review of prospectively collected data from clinic and operative logbooks. Setting: District hospitals in resource-poor areas of rural Ecuador. Patients (or Other Participants): A consecutive sample of all patients presenting for reconstructive surgical care from 1996-2011. Main Outcome Measure(s): Post-operative complication(s), DALYs-averted, economic impact in US dollars. Results: 1142 reconstructive surgical cases were performed over 15 years. The mean patient age was 18.8 years and 45% were female. Surgery was most commonly performed for scar contractures (451 cases, 39.5%), of which burn scars comprised a significant amount (193 cases, 16.9% of total cases). There were 40 postoperative complications within 7 days of operation (3.5%), and partial wound dehiscence was the most common (16/40, 40%). Cleft disorders comprised 276 cases (24.2%), of which 17 were lip only, 38 were palate only, and 122 were lip and palate. 102 cases were primary cleft lip and/or palate cases. Between 395 and 1,035 total DALYs were averted through surgery for these 102 cases of primary cleft repair. This translates to an economic benefit between $5.0 million (human capital approach) and $67.4 million (Value of a Statistical Life approach). Conclusions: Plastic surgical disease is a significant source of morbidity for patients in resource-limited regions. Dedicated programs that provide essential reconstructive surgery can produce significant clinical and economic benefits to host countries.