Ear Surgery

Earlobe surgery is intended to repair a torn or “cleft” earlobe, remove a keloid scar (thick scarring), or reduce the size or protruding nature of the earlobe. Most earlobe surgery is performed in the office under local anesthesia or in conjunction with other facial surgery in an operating room.

Cleft earlobes are commonly repaired with a “Z-plasty” to rearrange the scar. The old piercing is closed, and the ear may be re-pierced.

Keloids are typically excised and a pressure dressing is sewn in place for a few weeks to prevent recurrence. Additional techniques are available to treat early scar formation. Earlobe reductions or setbacks are performed with incisions and local tissue re-arrangements tailored to your specific anatomy and deformity.

Earlobe repair and reduction surgeries are typically not covered by insurance, as the are considered a cosmetic surgery done for aesthetic purposes only.

Babies born with protruding ears may be able to have their ears remolded, permanently, with ear taping in the neonatal period. Potentially future surgery can be avoided with this procedure.

Newborns 0-4 weeks of age are most likely to respond to ear taping procedures, although taping may be attempted up to 2-3 months of age.

Infant ear pinning is done using gentle surgical adhesives and tape that is used to mold the ear back, over soft wax to reform the ear cartilage. Newborn cartilage is malleable and may be permanently reformed with this procedure. This moldability is felt to be due to elasticity of the cartilage from the influence of maternal hormones, and diminishes over the first months of life. The taping process is continued as tolerated by the child with regular office visits for several weeks. It is generally painless but does require motivated caretakers to work through the process.