Earlobe Repair Surgery

Repair – Pierced Ear

It is one of our most common custom in Nepal and has now evolved more as a fashion.
Over time, a pierced earlobe can become stretched if a person frequently wears large or heavy earrings. Eventually the earrings may tear completely through the lobe. A torn earlobe may also result from trauma, such as having an earring pulled off or caught on clothing.

Our doctor repairs enlarged or torn earlobes with a quick in-office procedure performed under local anesthesia. He first freshens the edges of the ear lobe hole by removing a small amount of the skin, sometimes requires cutting the lobe through the margin. Then, using ultra-fine sutures, the earlobe is meticulously repaired to reconstruct a normal, rounded earlobe that matches you natural ear shape.

You will be able to return home immediately after the procedure, with only a small tape covering the stitches. The stitches will be removed after 7 to 10 days. When the earlobe has healed and the scar has softened, you may re-pierce the repaired earlobe. It takes about three months for the earlobe to fully heal.

Otoplasty

Ear surgery, known as otoplasty, is performed at Skin Arts Aesthetics to set prominent ears back closer to the head or to reduce the size of large ears or earlobes or to unfold the upper part of the ear in cupped or constricted ear. The surgery is performed on adults and children between the ages of four and fourteen. Since the ears are almost fully grown by the age of four, there is no reason to wait until a child is older to have the procedure performed. Working with the board certified plastic surgeons at Skin Arts Aesthetics, you can be assured of a safe and comfortable procedure with the outcome you desire.

Are You A Good Candidate for Ear Surgery?
The ideal candidate for ear correction surgery is a healthy child between the ages of four and fourteen or an adult in general good health who has one or more of the following characteristics:
• Ears that protrude too far from the head
• Ears that are too large and out of proportion to the head
• Overly large earlobes

Meeting With Your Plastic Surgeon
Prior to scheduling your ear correction surgery, you will meet at length with the doctors at Skin Arts Aesthetics. At this meeting, the doctor will evaluate the size and shape of your ears, or your child’s ears, and determine the best way to perform the procedure. It is generally felt that parents should not insist on the surgery until their child feels ready and wants the change in appearance. Children who want the surgery are generally more cooperative during the healing process and happier with the outcome.
During the initial consultation, your plastic surgeon will ask you (or your child) how you would like your ears to look after the procedure. The doctor will also thoroughly explain the procedure and its expected results and answer any questions you have. The type of anesthesia to be used and cost and payment information will also be discussed. You will be asked to provide a medical history.

How The Procedure Is Performed
Your ear surgery will be performed in our state of the art surgical suite. In some cases with younger children, your surgeon may recommend a hospital stay of one night to better assist with the recovery process. Younger children are usually given general anesthesia so they can sleep throughout the entire procedure. Older children and adults generally receive a local anesthesia with sedation.

When both ears are being corrected, the surgery usually takes between one to three hours to complete. Your doctor makes a small incision in the back of the ear to expose the cartilage. The cartilage is then molded and bent back toward the head and usually non-removable stitches are used to help maintain the new shape.

After the surgery is complete, a bulky dressing is wrapped around your head to hold the ears in place; this dressing is worn for a few days to help enhance the molding of the cartilage and the healing of the incisions. Once the dressing is removed, a soft headband is worn at night for several weeks.

• What To Expect After Your Surgery
  Activity When
  Stitches Removed A Week After Surgery
  Back to Work or School Within a Week After Surgery
  Activities That May Affect the Ears Six Weeks After Surgery
  Strenuous Activity Four Weeks After Surgery
  Fading of Scars Several Months to One Year

Detachment of Attached lobule
Ear varies with population and individual, and as a part of it, so does the ear lobule (the lower most part of your ear). Some are born with perfect rounded lobule that sits apart from the jaw and are the best companion to the ear pendent (jhumka). Some are born with the elongated lobule that are attached to the jaw line and impedes the sway of the jhumka. Our plastic surgeon can turn your attached lobule into the free rounded lobule as a simple day-care-procedure under local anesthesia over a period of just a hour. You can join work just the next day with just small tape to cover your stitches that comes off in a week time.

Keloids
One of the most common area for keloids are the sites of ear piercings. Our plastic surgeon has a multi-modal approach to it with: pressure therapy, intra-lesion injections (steroids / 5 FU), electro-cautery, laser therapy and excision and repair (intra-lesion or extra-lesion). Even after excision and repair of large keloid, you will be surprised that the ear looks still so normal shape and size.