This surgery (otoplasty)
is usually performed when a child reaches school age in
order to avoid classroom teasing and emotional scarring. It
is also carried out on adults who may have hidden their
embarrassing ears for years. This surgery is not as simple
as it may seem.
The goal is to move the ears towards the
head while keeping them natural looking, not too irregular
and not too flat. The incisions are hidden behind the ears.
The cartilage is carefully reshaped and repositioned with
multiple permanent sutures. One or two of these sutures may
later be rejected by the body and are easily removed, but
the shape of the ears usually remains unchanged.
