When your ears extend too far from the sides of your head, you can feel self-conscious. A prolonged lack of self-confidence can take a toll on your emotional well-being. You may spend too much mental energy ensuring your ears are always covered with hairstyles or hats. You may not pose for photographs with your grandparents or friends that you later wish you had taken. At Veda Medical in Live Oak, TX, we offer otoplasty surgery to give you the look you want.
How Long Should I Expect My Recovery Period to Last?
Unlike other cosmetic procedures, the recovery period is incredibly quick. You should be able to return to work a couple of days after your procedure. With that being said, you must follow all of your post-op recovery instructions throughout your recovery period to guarantee your ears will remain in their new position.
Take Care of Your Ears By Wearing a Headband
It is crucial to wear a dressing over your ears for several days to protect your ears. Once it is safe for you to remove this protective dressing, you must wear a special headband. Initially, you’ll need to wear this headband regardless of what you do. Eventually, you’ll only need to wear it at night. Moreover, you should sleep on your back for several days. If you sleep on your back, unnecessary pressure will not be placed on your ears for hours at a time.
Indulge in Some Much-Deserved Rest and Relaxation
Besides wearing your headband as instructed, you should spend a couple of weeks avoiding intense physical activities. Depending on the scope of your procedure, you may need to take prescription drugs to ensure you are comfortable enough to rest in the days following your procedure.
Come Back for a Follow-Up Appointment
When we schedule your procedure, we will also schedule a post-op appointment for you. During this appointment, we will assess the results of the procedure. Furthermore, your sutures will be removed.
Be Good to Your Ears By Wearing Sunscreen
Even though you can stop wearing your headband after a couple of weeks, you will still need to be good to your ears for a number of months following your procedure. Specifically, you should protect your ears from extreme temperatures.
For instance, you should blow-dry your hair using the lowest heat setting possible. Moreover, you will need to make sure they are protected from the sun adequately for at least 12 months. Don’t spend too much time outdoors when the sun is the strongest and wear highly protective sunscreen.
What Should I Expect During My Ear Repositioning Procedure?
We will administer anesthesia before your procedure starts to ensure you remain comfortable throughout the process. Once the drug has numbed you, your procedure will begin.
Expect a Procedure That Is Tailored to Your Needs
The cosmetic concerns you have will dictate the techniques we use to improve the appearance of your ears. For instance, your procedure may start with tiny incisions being made behind your ears. Making the incisions discreetly behind your ears ensures people won’t notice the incisions as they are healing. After these incisions have been made discreetly, we may remove a bit of cartilage from your ears.
To encourage your ears to sit closer to the sides of your head, we may place temporary sutures, a special type of thread used for medical purposes. Sutures are often used to hold tissues in their desired position and keep incisions closed as they heal.
Finishing Your Improvements
Once the improvements are completed, we will suture your incisions closed and put the protective dressing in place gently. Along with the sutures, the dressing will ensure your ears remain where they should be.
Will This Procedure Make My Ears Smaller?
People often think their ears are too big for their heads because they protrude. Nevertheless, it is rare for ears to be disproportionately large; few people need a lot of cartilage removed to make their ears significantly smaller.
There’s a good chance your ears look too big because they are so noticeable when they protrude too far from your head. Therefore, you may only need to have your ears shifted closer to your head to look proportional to the rest of your head.
What If I Need My Ears Smaller?
If your ears truly are too large for the rest of your head, we can correct that. Using a highly advanced technique known as wedge resection, the size of your ears can be shrunk to make them more proportionate to the rest of your head. We will assess the size of your ears during your initial evaluation to determine if minimizing your ears will be beneficial to you.
How Long Does This Procedure Take?
Otoplasty surgery is a cosmetic procedure designed to make your ears closer to the sides of your head. Additionally, it can make the ears more symmetrical and address large ears. How long the procedure takes depends on the specifics of your unique case.
Typically, the procedure doesn’t take very long and it is performed conveniently on an outpatient basis. This means that you don’t have to spend the night at a hospital. For most people, this procedure can be performed in as little as two or three hours. Once it’s over, you are free to return home and rest.
When Can I Expect to See the Final Results of My Procedure?
You won’t be able to see the final results of your otoplasty surgery as soon as your procedure is over because it will take time for your ears to adjust. Most people find their ears have healed almost completely after a few weeks but everyone heals at a different rate depending on your health and the extent of your procedure. You should expect to enjoy the final results of your procedure after approximately two to three months have passed.
Would This Ear Improvement Procedure Be Suitable for Me?
This ear improvement procedure will probably be suitable for you if you are a relatively healthy adult who does not suffer from any major health issues. However, an initial consultation is required to ensure this ear repositioning procedure will be safe for you. During this consultation, we will assess your health and ensure you understand what this procedure can do for you.
Be Prepared to Discuss Your Health
If you’d like to know if this procedure will be safe for you, be prepared to discuss your medical history with us, including any procedures you have already had on your ears and any medical conditions you currently suffer from.
If you currently suffer from a minor malady, you may still be considered a good candidate for this procedure. If you suffer from something serious, like a bleeding disorder, or have a history of cancer, this procedure may not be safe for you.
Be Prepared to Talk About Your Goals
It is crucial that you have an understanding of how this procedure will affect the size, shape, and position of your ears. For example, you must understand that it is unrealistic for your ears to lay completely flat against your head.
When you allow your ears to protrude a bit, you can wear sunglasses and clean the skin behind your ears adequately. Moreover, you should understand that you may not be able to achieve perfect symmetry. Nevertheless, a bit of asymmetry is nothing to worry about because people rarely have symmetrical ears.
Am I Too Old for Otoplasty Surgery?
This procedure is commonly performed on children with protruding ears because their self-esteem can be damaged due to frequent bullying. Besides protecting their self-esteem, this procedure is often performed on children because the ears stop growing at a young age so there is no worry that the ears will continue to grow after the procedure.
Also, the younger a child is, the more flexible his or her cartilage is and they recover incredibly quickly after the procedure. Nevertheless, there is no need to fret if you are an adult considering this procedure. As stated previously, you may still be considered a good candidate for this procedure if you are a relatively healthy adult; it is not too late to improve the size, shape or position of your ears. This procedure is just as safe and effective for adults as it is for children.
How Long Will the Results of This Procedure Last?
Once the sutures have held your ears in their new position for several weeks, they can be removed without worry that your ears will return to their previous position. Therefore, you can expect with complete confidence that the results of this procedure will be permanent.
What Do I Need to Do to Prepare for This Procedure?
We will discuss everything you need to do to prepare for your procedure during your initial evaluation. If you follow each of these instructions, you will enjoy a faster, more comfortable recovery period.
Don’t Consume Tobacco Products
If you consume tobacco products, you should stop for six weeks before your procedure. If you don’t think you can stop smoking for six weeks, do your best to not smoke for the two weeks leading up to your procedure. Smoking slows your skin’s ability to heal itself. The longer you go without smoking, the more efficiently your skin can produce the collagen necessary to heal itself after your procedure.
Alter the Drugs You Take
In some cases, clients need to stop taking certain drugs and nutritional supplements before their procedure. For instance, NSAIDs and other drugs that increase the viscosity of the blood can affect the way your body reacts to the techniques used to improve the appearance of your ears. Therefore, you may need to stop taking these drugs for several days before your treatment.
Ask a Loved One to Accompany You
You won’t be able to drive for 24 hours following your procedure due to the anesthesia used. Therefore, you should have a loved one drive you to your appointment and back home. Additionally, make sure you have someone to stay with you for the first 24 hours post-op. He or she should be prepared to cook for you and keep your house clean while you make your initial recovery.
Boost Your Self-Confidence
Everyone wants to look as good as possible. Ears that are symmetrical and proportionate with the size of your head go a long way in boosting self-confidence. Otoplasty surgery is a safe, effective way to improve the symmetry and size of your ears, as well as repositioning them. The recovery period following this procedure is minimal. If you’re interested in learning more about this procedure, please book an appointment with us at Veda Medical in Live Oak, TX.
