This deformity causes deeper emotional upset than is generally realized by parents or patient’s friends. The visual and psychological improvement following this surgery is exciting and rewarding to the patient, family and surgeon.
Adolescents and adults may choose to have otoplasty for various reasons including being self-conscious about their ears since childhood, improving their hair styling options or to feel less self conspicuous when getting out of the water.
Children may have otoplasty after 5 years of age when the ear has achieved the majority of its growth and prior to entering grammar school. Otoplasty in children is usually performed under general anesthesia at an outpatient surgery. Otoplasty performed on adolescents and adults is done under twilight anesthesia at our accredited surgery center.
Otoplasty is performed through an incision behind the ear. The cartilage that is pushing the ear away from the head is weakened by removing cartilage and placing multiple deep stitches to hold the ear to heal in the new position during the healing process. Patients who have a “cup” like deformity need additional cartilage suturing techniques to create a new fold. Otoplasty scars are hidden behind the ear.
A protective dressing is placed for twenty four hours after surgery. A supportive dressing is worn at home and night for several weeks, again to encourage the ear to heal in their new position. Physical activity can resume after several weeks.
No two ears are identical, even in the same individual. Therefore, it is common for there to be some degree of asymmetry after surgery, which is seldom visible.
The high degree of success of this procedure and its significant psychological benefit make otoplasty a highly rewarding surgery.
