Protruding or misshapen ears are often a source of significant psychological distress. Children are often teased for protruding ears and the pain of these experiences may last well into adulthood. Sometimes, hairstyles may be used to camouflage some of these problems; but if you are self-conscious of the appearance of your ears or if your child is being teased for protruding ears, otoplasty offers simple and dramatic relief.
ANATOMY
Ear deformities come in several shapes and sizes. Two are most common. Some ears are normally shaped, but protrude further from the head than is normal. This may happen on one or both sides and may happen from either overgrowth of the cartilage of the ear or excessive bone formation behind the ear. This is often a familial trait. Another common deformity of the ear is when the ear fails to fold naturally during development. This causes the anthelix to be flat and the upper portion of the ear to become cupped.
Other less common defects may occur. At times, the rim of the ear is abnormally shaped or the ear will be of an abnormal size. Knobs of abnormal cartilage may form as well. All of these defects may be improved with otoplasty.
SPLIT EARLOBES
Split earlobes may be partial or complete. This problem is caused by either using heavy earrings over a long period of time or from trauma. Sometimes an earring becomes tangled in an article of clothing or may be pulled on by a child. This may be easily repaired under local anesthesia. The earring hole is sometimes preserved or the ears may be repierced in six weeks.
UNDERSTANDING SURGERY
Otoplasty may be done under local anesthesia in an adult, but for a child or if someone is anxious about surgery, sedation may be used. After a local anesthetic is infiltrated, a small ellipse of skin is removed from behind the ear. Through this incision, the ear cartilage is weakened and reshaped with sutures or repositioned on the skull itself. Skin sutures are removed in approximately seven days.
Following surgery, a pressure dressing is placed on the ear, which must be left in place for five to seven days. When this dressing is removed and the sutures are removed, a compression dressing or ACE wrap should be worn on the ears at night. This is to avoid any accidental injury of the ears while sleeping. Pain is minimal following surgery and if any significant pain occurs it should be reported immediately to your doctor. Contact sports should be avoided for approximately six weeks but regular exercise may be resumed once the sutures are removed.
Ear cartilage tends to have a "memory" and will occasionally spring-back to some degree over time. It is important that you follow up with your surgeon to ensure the improvement is long lasting.
WHEN TO PERFORM SURGERY
Many parents ask, "When is the ideal time to perform surgery?" The child's ear is mostly grown at age five or six and this seems to be the ideal time for otoplasty. At this point, they are entering school and surgery may be done before the child is subject to the abuse of his peers. The soft cartilage of children helps make ear reshaping easier and less traumatic. However, ear surgery may be done at any age. Even in adults, the surgery is usually very successful.
Computer imaging may help show you what results you may expect with surgery. We at Aesthetic Solutions will do everything in our power to help make your experience a pleasant and easy solution to protruding ears.
PREPARING FOR SURGERY
Once you decide to proceed with ear refinement, you will be given a detailed explanation as to what to do to prepare for surgery. In order to minimize bruising and swelling, we ask that you avoid aspirin or aspirin-containing products as well as any non-steroidal anti-inflammatories such as ibuprofen or naproxen (including Motrin, Aleve and Advil) for at least two weeks before surgery. It is generally fine to be taking Tylenol (Acetaminophen). In addition, we ask you to avoid taking vitamin E supplements as this may also result in more bruising.
We have found using a vitamin K cream and using a homeopathic herb called "Arnica Montana" tends to reduce bruising. We have both of these available in our clinic and will be happy to discuss this with you further. It is important to be well rested for surgery, and if you are anxious, a mild sedative may be given for the night before surgery. Surgery may be done with a local anesthetic, but at times intravenous sedation will be desired as well. If you are undergoing sedation, it is important to avoid anything to eat or drink after midnight the night before surgery. If you have high blood pressure or take other medications, these medications may be taken with a sip of water the morning of surgery. If you have any questions, please feel free to call our staff for details.
5821 Farrington Road
Suite 101
Chapel Hill, NC 27517
Durham, NC 27704
Tel: 919-403-6200
Fax: 919-403-6242
info@aesthetic-solutions.com