Otoplasty
Protruding ears can be a source of embarrassment for many people. Surgical ear correction (otoplasty) comes to the rescue in such cases.
The protrusion of the auricles is a congenital defect, related to the lack of bending or insufficient bending of the ear cartilages. As a result, the ears excessively stand out from the head. The deformation can affect one or both sides.
The surgery involves appropriately modeling the cartilage using stitches. The wound is located behind the auricle. Depending on the age and preferences of the patient, the operation is performed under local or intravenous anesthesia. Children are typically operated on after the age of 7-8.
After the surgery, the ears may be slightly swollen and bruised for about 10-14 days. The dressing is usually changed on the 2nd day after the procedure. Between the 8th and 10th day, skin sutures are removed, and the head dressing is replaced with a bandage. For several weeks after the ear correction, they should be protected from all injuries.
We also perform ear reconstruction in microtia, which is a congenital defect involving the lack or underdevelopment of the ear. The microtia operation involves “sculpting” the ear anew to restore its normal appearance. An undeveloped or lost ear due to injury can be recreated. Reconstructions are performed on patients over the age of 6, due to the possibility of obtaining the right amount of cartilage material necessary for recreating the ear.
The process is two-fold:
– first, the patient’s cartilage is taken from the rib arch, it is sculpted into ear cartilage and sewn into a tunnel in the area of the missing earlobe.
– after 6 months, the ear is separated from the skull using a skin graft.
Both stages take place under general anesthesia, and a one-day hospital stay is required.
