Young children can be very cruel and their simple teasing can have long lasting effects. Even very minor aspects of a child’s appearance can lead to teasing. Many parents of children with prominent ears frequently contact Kole Plastic Surgery of the Kole Plastic Surgery Center in Southampton Bucks County PA. The ear pinning procedure is also known as otoplasty and is used to move the ears closer to the head as well as move the top of the ear to the correct angle. The otoplasty procedure can reliably produce results that will increase the child’s overall self-esteem and ensure that they don’t suffer from teasing.
At what age is an otoplasty performed?
Otoplasty is a surgical procedure usually performed on children between the ages of approximately four and around fourteen years of age. At around age four, the child’s ears are typically almost fully grown. Many parents prefer to have the ear pinning surgery as early as permitted to avoid the teasing risk starting in grade school. Often, the surgery can be performed on adults most frequently so they can wear their hair short instead of longer to cover their ears.
The Otoplasty procedure
The otoplasty can be performed with local anesthesia for minor deformities in adults or intravenous sedation or general anesthesia in children. The procedure is very safe and all the incisions are located in the sulcus of the posterior ear and are easily hidden in the ear fold. A small elliptical incision is made behind the posterior fold of the ear. The skin is then separated from the cartilage exposing the cartilage from the posterior side. The cartilage is then weakened using small partial thickness parallel incisions. These incisions weaken the cartilage and allow the cartilage spring back to its original position. The cartilage is then held in place with permanent sutures and then the skin is closed behind the ear. Drains are usually not placed.
Otoplasty recovery
The recovery from otoplasty is relatively rapid. The child patient usually wears a head wrap or a head band for a few days to prevent bending the ears forward and damaging the sutures while healing. Adult patients only wear a sweat head band while sleeping. Pain medicine is prescribed but infrequently used.
Questions about ear pinning surgery and other procedures, as well as setting up a free consultation, can be submitted online by going to www.koleplasticsurgery.com or by calling our Southampton Bucks County office at 215-315-7655 .
