What Are the Benefits of Ear Surgery?

It’s very common to dislike the position or size of your ears. Similarly, having large or excessively protruding ears could cause your child to have self-esteem issues and other problems. Instead of spending years dealing with these challenges, you should consider receiving an ear surgery from Tampa Bay Plastic Surgery

What Are the Benefits of Ear Surgery?

The scientific name for this procedure is an otoplasty. Since we can use gentle techniques to correct aesthetic problems and other issues that affect your ears, receiving ear surgery will provide you with many benefits.

It Can Permanently Improve Your Ears

Under some circumstances, we will change the shape of your ears and eliminate some of the cartilage that is causing you to experience cosmetic issues. If we use these techniques to enhance your ears, the positive changes in your look will probably last for the rest of your life. As a result, you won’t need to maintain your new improvements by getting additional aesthetic procedures.

It Can Fix Aesthetic and Medical Issues

This efficient procedure can improve many medical and cosmetic issues. In particular, we can make excessively large ears look smaller, move protruding ears into a more attractive position, and change the appearance of underdeveloped ears. We can also fix torn ear lobes and other types of ear damage.

It’s Very Straightforward

Receiving an ear procedure is a straightforward process that is usually followed by a very brief recovery time. If you receive this easy procedure when you are an adult, you probably won’t be required to get general anesthesia during your appointment. Instead, we will usually give you a sedating medication and a local anesthetic. 

It Can Enhance Your Quality of Life

If you dislike the appearance of your ears, your confidence may decrease, and you might have difficulty relaxing in social or business settings. For example, you might feel unhappy when you pose for pictures with your friends.

In addition, you might avoid looking at yourself in the mirror or feel self-conscious when colleagues or friends comment on your ears. After you address your aesthetic problems, you will be able to focus on your work, hobbies, and other activities without worrying about your ears.

It Can Enhance Your Child’s Self-Esteem

Many children experience problems that are related to the appearance of their ears. If your child has excessively protruding ears, they might be bullied when they participate in sports or hobbies. In addition, your child’s classmates might tease them during school. This problem can interfere with your child’s ability to complete educational assignments and cause them to have other academic challenges.

Over time, this teasing could cause your child to stop attending parties and participating in after-school activities. Receiving an ear procedure may prevent your child from being teased and increase their self-esteem. As a result, your child may feel happier when they are playing sports, attending school, and spending time with their friends.

What Types of Ear Problems Can This Procedure Correct?

We can address a very broad range of ear issues during this type of procedure.

Fixing Protruding Ears

When your ears stick out in a noticeable manner, this feature may appear to be very prominent. Receiving an aesthetic procedure will allow you to address this challenge during a quick and comfortable appointment. We will use a gentle method to move your ears closer to the sides of your head. Under some circumstances, we will also remove unnecessary cartilage from your ears.

Minimizing Large Ears

The outer area of your ear is called your pinna. If this part of your ear is very big, you might have a medical condition that is called macrotia. Having very large pinnas can cause your ears to look much more prominent than your eyes, mouth, and other facial features. Fortunately, we can address this problem by eliminating some of your cartilage and putting stitches into this location.

Improving Small Ears

If your pinnas are very small, you may have a medical issue that is called microtia. This problem can make your ears look uneven or excessively flat. To correct this aesthetic issue, we will add extra material to your ears.

Correcting Other Ear Problems

If you get an accident or develop an injury, the appearance of your ears may change. During a car accident, you might experience trauma that causes your ears to look asymmetrical. Similarly, you might develop a damaged earlobe if you experience a sporting injury. We can use sophisticated techniques to repair your earlobes, give your ears a more uniform appearance, and correct other types of ear damage.

Who Is Eligible for This Procedure?

To determine whether you are eligible for this ear procedure, you’ll need to have a personalized meeting at our office in Tampa.

Looking at Your Ears

During your consultation, we will look at your ears and talk about the goals that you would like to achieve during your procedure. If you were in an accident, you should describe the medical issues that you developed after this event. If you are unhappy with the position, shape, or other aspects of your ears, you should discuss these aesthetic problems with us.

We will also need to know about all of your health issues, current medications, and allergies. In particular, you should tell us if you have any allergies or sensitivities to anesthesia and other medications. If you are in generally good health, you will usually be able to receive this procedure. If you have diabetes, high blood pressure, or other medical challenges, you might need to use another method to improve your ears.

Evaluating Your Child’s Ears

If your child is under the age of five, we will not be able to fix their protruding ears. At this point, the cartilage in their ears will not be firm enough to receive stitches. During your first meeting at our office, we will assess the cartilage in your child’s ears and determine a suitable time for them to receive this procedure. 

What Will Happen During This Procedure?

Getting an ear surgery is a quick and comfortable experience, and we can use gentle medications to help you feel peaceful and calm throughout this process. In general, this type of procedure will take up to two hours to finish.

Beginning Your Appointment

If you are receiving this procedure when you are an adult, we will probably provide you with local anesthesia and a sedating medication. If your child is receiving this procedure, we will give them general anesthesia that will allow them to remain unconscious while we enhance their ears.

Although we will customize your procedure, we may begin by making small incisions in the inner folds of your ears. Sometimes, we will make incisions in the area behind each of your ears. Next, we might remove cartilage or place extra material into this location. We can also use advanced techniques to fold your cartilage and make other changes to the appearance of your ears.

Completing Your Appointment

Once we have addressed your medical or cosmetic issues, we will use stitches to secure your incisions and put comfortable bandages onto your ears. After we have monitored your reaction to this procedure for a sufficient amount of time, you will usually be able to return to your house and begin resting.

When Will My Ears Recover From This Procedure?

Although you will probably have a brief recovery time, you will need to make some minor changes to your bathing habits and other aspects of your schedule while your ears are adjusting to your procedure.

Protecting Your Ears

After you return to your home, we will probably ask to you continue wearing your bandages for the next couple of days. During this part of your recovery period, you might need to briefly stop your hair. Avoiding this activity will keep your bandages dry. Once you take off your bandages, you will need to put on a comfortable headband during the nighttime. This special band will support your ears during the healing process.

Going Back to Your Normal Routine

During the start of your recovery time, you should refrain from engaging in stressful or physically challenging activities. Instead, you can watch television, read enjoyable books, and do other relaxing activities at your home. You’ll usually be able to go back to your workplace after seven days have passed. If your child received this procedure, they will typically feel comfortable returning to their school at this time.

After about two weeks have passed, you will probably be able to begin exercising and doing other physical activities. However, you should not play football or other sports that involve physical contact for at least 90 days. Further, you will need to refrain from going into pools and swimming in the ocean for up to 60 days.

Will My Insurance Help Me Cover the Cost of My Ear Procedure?

Your ability to receive insurance coverage will depend on the type of ear procedure that you are getting. In general, your health insurance will not cover a procedure that is used to address aesthetic problems that affect your ears. For example, your insurance probably will not pay for a procedure that corrects excessively protruding ears that are out of balance with the rest of your features.

In contrast, your health insurance may pay for an ear procedure that is used to correct a significant medical problem. If you were in a car accident, your insurance may pay for you to receive a reconstructive procedure that fixes the ear damage that you experienced during this event.

Will This Procedure Create Natural-Looking Changes in My Ears?

This procedure is designed to produce attractive and sophisticated improvements in your ears. After your recovery period is finished, your ears will not look startling or unusual.

Instead, the changes in the shape, size, or other aspects of your ear will look very natural. When you meet new colleagues at your job or make new friends, these people probably will not realize that you used an aesthetic procedure to fix your overly large ears, protruding ears, or other cosmetic issues.  

Improve Your Ears

Having underdeveloped ears, overly large ears, or other aesthetic problems can lower your self-esteem and impair your ability to focus on your job, hobbies, and social activities. Similarly, your child’s classmates might tease them about the appearance of their ears. If you are interested in correcting these problems in yourself of your child by getting ear surgery, you should set up an appointment at Tampa Bay Plastic Surgery.