As long as you’re not missing one, the majority of people don’t really give their ears a second thought. The problem is that all it takes to have ears that blend in and look natural as opposed to ears that stick out is just millimetres and these can cause huge issues with confidence. It’s when they do stick out even slightly that people begin to have second thoughts about their ears and notice them more often.
Otoplasty, or ear surgery as it’s more commonly known, is the surgical procedure that is associated with pinning or reshaping the ears to give them a more natural appearance. While it is something that is performed thousands of times a year, it’s by no means the most popular surgery worldwide and for every otoplasty performed there are approximately 10 breast augmentations.
For those who are affected with confidence issues caused by their ears, otoplasty is a perfect solution and can provide amazing results, but what should you know before opting to have your ears reshaped?
First things first, no matter what your ears will never be perfectly identical and symmetrical. Whether your ears are completely natural or they’ve been surgically altered, no two ears are the same and while they may appear to be mostly symmetrical on first glance, it’s near enough impossible for this to be the case. The goal of otoplasty surgery is the reduce the visible difference and make the ears as close to identical as they possibly can be by altering the size, projection and even areas of cartilage to achieve the desired results.
Age doesn’t matter when it comes to surgery either, in fact it’s something that can be performed at any point after your ears have reached their full size (which usually happens around age 5) to any point through adulthood. As long as your ears have reached the correct amount of development, it shouldn’t stop you from being eligible for surgery. Commonly, the surgery tends to be performed for children around age 5 so that they aren’t affected by bullying as they go through school, between the ages of 12-16 or into the early years of adult life.
Another major benefit is that otoplasty surgery is considered to be almost painless. Although it can be performed under general anaesthesia (although this mainly depends on the age of the patient), local anaesthesia is all that is required. The recovery period afterwards also isn’t painful either and any pain can be managed using simple pain relief such as paracetamol and ibuprofen.
The last benefit above is one of the best because a full recovery from otoplasty surgery is going to take you a couple of months to complete. After surgery, it’s generally expected that the ear that has been operated on is required to be kept under wraps for around a week following the surgery and it may be necessary to wear a headband for a month afterwards to protect the ear. It’s also recommended to avoid any form of contact sports or strenuous exercise for a short period afterwards to avoid causing any damage to the ear or sutures.
It’s also worth noting that your sutures can come undone which can cause you to need a second otoplasty surgery to be performed. Among the surgical procedures that are performed worldwide, otoplasty has a relatively high recurrence rate that can rise up to 20% and if the stitches and sutures do come undone, a revision surgery is required to resolve the damage/change that has occurred.
Are there any risks associated with otoplasty surgery?
Otoplasty, like all forms of major surgery, does have risk associated with it, including the risk of bleeding, infection and a negative reaction to anaesthetic. Some of the other risks include;
- Scarring – Scarring is a risk with all surgeries and while they are permanent, your surgeon will do everything they can to minimise any visible scarring and will try to hide them behind your ears or within their natural creases.
- Asymmetrical ear placement – This could be caused either by the surgery or the healing process, but it is possible for the otoplasty surgery to cause changes to the ear that give an asymmetrical appearance to the ears.
- Changes to physical sensation – During the surgery, skin sensation in the area can be temporarily affected and rarely this can be permanent.
- Allergic reactions – It’s possible that a patient can experience an allergic reaction to things used in the procedure such as the anaesthesia or surgical tape.
- Stitching issues – It’s possible for the stitches that are used to hold the new shape of the ears in place can work their way to the surface, causing them to need to be removed. This can result in the need for an additional otoplasty surgery to be performed.
That is just about everything that you should know before booking yourself in for a consultation. If you feel that you would be a good candidate for otoplasty surgery, the best thing that you can do is get in touch with the Better Body Surgery team and arrange for your completely free, no-obligation consultation where we will be able to discuss your goals and provide advice on whether otoplasty surgery is the right thing for you.