New Jersey Ear Surgery - Otoplasty
Normal looking ears are usually not the center of attention, however large and abnormally positioned ears can be a lifelong source of embarrassment.
So if your ears are too large, uneven, misshapen, or stick straight out, you can benefit from a procedure called otoplasty.
Otoplasty procedure takes about two hours. In adults it is usually done in the office under local anesthesia. Children usually require general anesthesia. Otoplasty in children can be done any time after the age of five when ear cartilage is relatively firm and nearly adult-size. Young children do well with the procedure, so it’s wise to have this done early to protect your child from teasing that can damage his/her self-esteem.
During otoplasty, Dr. Ovchinsky makes an incision behind the ear in the skin crease so that the scar is well hidden. Excess skin is trimmed and ear cartilage gets exposed. The cartilage is then modified and reshaped with the use of special sutures to create folds that weren’t there before in order to give the ear a natural appearance. Same sutures are used to pin the ear down closer to the skull. The skin incision is then closed and a supporting bandage is placed over the ears.
After surgery patients experience very little pain, although ears may feel tender for several weeks. There may be some discoloration and swelling. Following surgery, you’ll wear a turban-like dressing to protect your ears, which is usually removed on the first postoperative day. After removal of the turban, you’ll wear an exercise headband over your ears when you sleep for the next three weeks. Children usually return to school a week after surgery. Adults often resume normal activities the day after.