Otoplasty is a surgery that aims to correct protruding ears and bring them closer to the head. If the auricle is located more than 18-20 mm (average 2 cm) from the head at its farthest point, it does not look aesthetically pleasing. Patients with prominent ears are usually operated on before they start primary school. Since the ear reaches a size close to adult size around the age of 5-6, surgery can be performed at any age, starting from this age.
Prominent ear deformity is a disorder in the bending angles of the cartilages in one ear and both ears. (more than 90 degrees), the ear pit being larger than normal (turbinate hypertrophy), the entire ear being large (macrochia), or other deformities in the ear cartilages. Ear shape and size can be changed with this operation.
Prominent ear operation can be performed in a hospital under operating room conditions, under general or local anesthesia. The patient can return home on the same day after being monitored for a while after the operation. The operation takes 1 hour for each ear and 2 hours in total.
Different steps can be applied in the operation plan depending on the problems in the ear. In the generally used technique, the ear skin is opened from the back, the ear cartilages are released, the part that needs to be folded is cut parallel and a half tube is made from the cartilage. It is folded appropriately and fixed with stitches. When deemed necessary, cartilage is removed from various regions, especially from the ear pit (concha). After the cartilage membranes and soft tissues are closed, the excess skin is removed and stitched. The stitches are dissolvable and do not need to be removed. After the surgery, the patient is monitored for 1 day with a fully closed ear dressing and then with a limited dressing applied to the ear. Then the dressing is removed and the patient is sent for check-ups. The auricle can be moved back to the desired extent, depending on anatomical dimensions (generally providing a 16-20 mm opening).
Apart from the problem described, in the ear; Large auricles, asymmetrical auricles, lobule-shaped ears, bowl-shaped ears, and ears with deformities at the edges are also encountered. These can be fixed As mentioned, in cases where the auricle is missing, a new auricle can be created.
Read: 0
