Ear Surgery (Otoplasty)

The Operation: What Happens during Surgery?

Ear surgery is usually as offered by Mobilise as an inpatient procedure.  You may be released on the day of the operation, but you may require an overnight stay in the hospital or clinic.  This is always required in the case of minors.

Generally, otoplasty is carried out with the patient under general anesthesia.  Adults and older children may have the operation under local anesthetic and sedation. This means you will be relaxed but awake during the operation.

The surgery can take anywhere between one to three hours – possibly more - depending on the extent of the procedure and whether cartilage is removed and/or reshaped. 

The surgeon makes an incision behind the ear to reveal the cartilage.  In simple procedures, the cartilage can be reformed without any being removed and the skin used to pin the ear back.  Excess skin may be removed and the incision is sutured with stitches, non-removable or absorbable.  Some times, cartilage may be removed to ensure a smoother outline to the ear.  In all cases, the surgeon works within the normal folds behind the ear to ensure minimal visible scarring. 

Even if surgery is required on one ear, the surgeon is likely to need to operate on both to ensure their symmetry and alignment. 

Recovery / Convalescence

Ear surgery is easy to recover from and you are likely to feel able to be up and around within a few hours of surgery when the anesthetic has worn off.  You may prefer to have an overnight stay in hospital, and this is always required for children or minors who will be monitored until all effects of the anesthesia have worn off. 

Immediately after surgery you will have rather bulky bandages around your head, and you will experience some swelling, throbbing and pain.  This discomfort can be alleviated by regular pain killers. 

Within a few days, and certainly by a week after surgery, you will be able to have lighter bandages.  Your ears will still need protection and assistance as they heal – even for up to a month - so be prepared to follow post-operative guidelines.  You might need, for example, to wear a light bandage (a tennis sweat band for instance), even if just at night, for several weeks to come.  This is to protect your ears as much as help them settle in to their new position.

Parents will need to ensure children are aware of the care required, and may need to let educational establishments know of the operation.  Teaching staff should be aware so they can keep an eye on the child in playgrounds and perhaps excuse the child from sports until the ears are completely healed.  

Stitches are removed at one week following surgery but dissolvable ones will disappear on their own within a week to 10 days.

You can return to work within a week, but you may prefer to take leave for up to two weeks if you need to keep bandages on during the day.  Children need a minimum of a week off school.

Safety

The risks and complications arising from ear surgery are minimal.  So too are the immediate discomfort and any long-term scarring.  Ear surgery should have no impact on your hearing. 

You will have a thin scar line behind the ear after healing but it should be well hidden in the natural crease where the ear meets your scalp. 

Otoplasty is a very common and highly successful procedure, but as with all cosmetic surgery, there are risks from the surgery itself and from any complication which might arise.  You may also feel that the outcome is not what you intended.  There are no guarantees in cosmetic surgery, but rest assured that the majority of people find the benefits of ear surgery are long term and they psychologically better having opted for it.  

Most complications from ear surgery are temporary and relate to possible infection or are due to immediate pain and swelling. 

All cosmetic surgery carries the risk of:

• Infection
• Allergic reaction to anesthetics or analgesics
• Lack of wound healing (excessive bleeding – hematoma)
• Blood clot 
• Fluid accumulation
• Ongoing, excessive pain
• The need for further, possibly corrective, surgery
• Absorbable sutures causing skin ruptures and uneven healing of the scar tissue

What are the risks in Otoplasty?

Blood clot in the ear: this is rare, but if it occurs it may have to be drained off with a needle. 

Infection

This is possible in the cartilage and may then give rise to badly healed scars (raised bumps called Keloids).  If fluid builds up under the wound, it will be drawn out and the infection treated with antibiotics.

Pain & throbbing

Usual in the first hours and days after surgery.  You can take regular painkillers such as Paracetamol and Ibuprofen as advised by your surgeon and medical team.  Children need specific pain relief, so ensure you have professional medical advice before administering any medication to them. 

Discomfort from bandages

Inevitably, the bulky dressings will cause irritation, but they are necessary. Children should be encouraged not to touch the dressings and not to scratch underneath them.

Numbness or tingling

It may take some time for your ears to regain sensitivity and some nerves may have been damaged in surgery.  Allow time for this to correct itself.  If abnormality persists, contact your surgeon.

Displeasure at the outcome

Allow yourself time to see the results of your surgery.  It can take up to six months for the ear to regain a feeling of normality and take on its new ‘shape’.  Give it time to settle down before making a judgement on the success of your operation.  In rare cases, asymmetry does occur or your ears may return to their former position.  In these instances, you will need corrective surgery.