Ear aesthetics, the ears are located on both sides of the face and they almost always stand out when viewed from the opposite side. For this reason, they are directly effective on facial beauty. Just as a large nose immediately catches the eye, the prominent ears make them appear larger than they are and make them remarkable. For this reason, if large and long noses negatively affect people’s self-confidence and psychology, prominent ears may also have negative effects. The shape of the nose usually deteriorates after a certain age. However, since the ear development is completed at about the age of seven, if the person has prominent ears, he or she may start to feel the discomfort of it from an early age.
Protruding ear; It is when the angle between the head and the ear is wider than normal. When these people are viewed from the front, the auricle is more prominent and the natural “Y” shaped folds of the auricle are generally less pronounced than normal. Protruding ears or big ear is actually an aesthetic problem, not a physical disease. In people with prominent prominent ears, this can lead to psychological and social problems that reduce the person’s quality of life. Ridiculing among friends often begins at school age; It can lead to the need to cover their ears with their hair, low self-esteem, anxiety, distorted body image and even depression. The reason why the ear looks prominent is actually due to the fact that its anatomy is different from normal ears.
Protruding ears are larger than normal ears. The cartilage of the ear, called the concha, which provides support to the ear, is larger than normal and pushes the part in front of the ear hole forward. The fold of the ear, which is parallel to the auricle, is not developed or is almost absent, so the upper part of the ear becomes more visible than normal when viewed from the opposite side. The earlobes may also be larger than normal or protruding forward. When viewed from the back, the ear appears wider from behind because the angle of the ear with the skull base is higher than normal. As a result, prominent ears cause the head to appear larger than normal. From an early age, women try to hide the ears, avoiding collecting their hair. Men may also complain that their friends make fun of their ears, especially since childhood.
How is Otoplasty Performed?
Surgery is the only treatment for protruding ears, large ears and deformities in the ears. Since ear development is completed around 5-6 years of age, the most appropriate time for protruding ears treatment in children is the preschool period. When surgery is performed in the pre-school period, psychological traumas and social problems that the child may experience in school life will be prevented. Performing otoplasty in the preschool period also allows the child to adapt to the social environment more easily with his new appearance without deteriorating his body image, and prevents self-confidence problems.
It is important to know that early treatment prevents psychological and social traumas in the light of the data that people with prominent ears mostly consult a doctor during adolescence and youth. Protruding ears operation, known as otoplasty in medicine, is one of the surgical applications with a high level of satisfaction. surgical intervention; It is an ear shaping operation applied to eliminate the protruding ears appearance, large ear appearance and insufficient folds in the natural auricle.
Things to Consider After Otoplasty
Protruding ears is usually inherited. In other words, if the parents have it, the child can also have it. It can be seen more in boys. Generally, there is no other disease accompanying prominent ear. The shape of the ear has no effect on hearing, and the problem is only a cosmetic problem. If it is noticed in infancy, this method does not provide a definitive solution, even if its progress can be stopped a little by applying a hair band. Protruding ears disorder can be fixed permanently only by surgery Ear Pinning Surgery is usually based on the removal of excess tissue through small incisions made behind the ear. These incisions, which are made in the folds behind the ear, leave almost no traces. Aesthetic and plastic surgery specialists make a personalized protruding ears operation plan. The most applied method is to reduce the excess cartilage in the ear by rasping, remove it if necessary, and give the ear a new shape that is curved backwards with special stitches that are not absorbed by the body. Otoplasty is performed in plastic surgery units. Since ear development is completed at the age of about seven, Ear Pinning Surgery can be performed from this age. This surgery, which is performed under general anesthesia in childhood, can be performed under local anesthesia in adulthood.
How Many Hours Does Otoplasty Take?
Our guest can stand up a few hours after the operation, which is performed under local anesthesia in operating room conditions and lasts for approximately 1 hour. General anesthesia may also be preferred, as it is more difficult for children to stay still during the operation. Ears are bandaged to protect ear tissue and facilitate healing. After 2-4 days, this dressing is removed and our guest’s head is wrapped with a lighter dressing. If self-dissolving stitches have not been used, the stitches are usually removed within a week. After removing the dressings, it is recommended to use a band that covers the ears, especially at night, for 6-8 weeks.
Immediately after the surgery, cotton gauze dressings are applied to protect the delicate ear skin. Two days after the surgery, this dressing is removed and a protective hair band is worn for about three weeks, allowing the ear to maintain its shape until it heals. In addition, the seams are protected in this way. In this way, there is no harm in patients lying on their ears. There is no need to take stitches after the surgery. There may be some swelling in the ears for the first few days, but there is no pain in the postoperative period. About two days after the surgery, the patients can be allowed to take a shower with the dressings removed. In this process, moisturizing creams are applied to the outer surface of the ear. While taking a shower, excessive force should not be applied behind the ear and care should be taken not to damage the stitches. During the controls, your doctor will look at the stitches behind your ear and clean these areas if necessary. Again, if it is necessary to use glasses during the recovery period, it is necessary to be careful that the glasses do not put pressure on the seams.
