Are You a Candidate?
Adults who are self-conscious about their ears and who are in good physical and emotional health are usually excellent candidates for otoplasty. Though their ear cartilage is more rigid than that of children, the surgery is safe and effective.
Your Otoplasty Procedure
Your surgeon may perform the operation in an accredited in-office surgical suite or an outpatient surgery center. Some doctors prefer to do the procedure in a hospital with an overnight stay, especially if the patient is a child or if general anesthesia is used. Ask your doctor about the hospital's arrangements for parents who wish to stay overnight with their children.
Though some otoplasty procedures can be done in as little as an hour, most surgeons estimate two hours for the operation.Young children usually sleep through the operation under general anesthesia. Older children and adults will likely have a local anesthetic combined with an IV sedative and will be able to go home the same day.
Even if only one ear is affected, cosmetic surgeons usually operate on both ears for a balanced, symmetrical result. Working through a small, football-shaped incision in the back of the ear, the surgeon may fold cartilage, holding it in position with permanent sutures; the surgeon may also remove excess cartilage or add cartilage to rebuild folds. Other techniques may also be used, depending on the revision being made. Sometimes the desired results can be obtained with sutures within the ear cartilage or to the deep tissues of the scalp.
Your ears aren't like anyone else's, so no two otoplasty procedures are alike. Your doctor may sculpt your new ear with any of the following techniques:
- Trimming, shaving, flattening, or folding cartilage and bending it back toward the head.
- Pinning the cartilage closer to the head with permanent sutures (which will not be visible to you or anyone else after surgery).
- Removing a sliver of cartilage and reattaching the edges with sutures.
- Removing skin, but not cartilage, using permanent sutures to reshape the ear.
- Trimming tissue from elongated earlobes.
The surgeon will then redrape the skin over the newly sculpted ear and close the incision with dissolvable or removable sutures (or both). Multiple layers of sutures will help the ear keep its new shape while it is healing.
Bandages will be applied to protect the ears and maintain their shape.Your doctor may saturate co tt on with antibiotic ointment, mold it in the crevices of the ears, and cover it with thick padding, which will be removed in one to three days. Meanwhile, you'll probably be told not to touch the bandages.
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