Earlobes are extremely prone to tearing and stretching because they do not contain any bone or cartilage – they are made up of delicate skin and fat. This fragile area is especially susceptible when paired with ear jewelry such as heavy earrings and/or the practice of gauging one’s ears. After years of wearing heavy earrings, the lobes will naturally stretch downwards and become misshapen. For those that gauge their earlobes, upon deciding to remove the gauges, many people are left with severe earlobe damage that is unsightly to look at.

Trauma is also a common cause of earlobe damage. This may include an earring being ripped out of the earlobe and tearing it, which is more common than most care to believe. While some of these tears and splits may heal on their own, heavy scarring should be expected if plastic surgery is not performed.

Fortunately, earlobe repair surgery is a relatively quick and painless procedure. Patients who believe they need earlobe repair will first come into The Plastic Surgery Group for a consultation. If it is decided that repair is the best approach, the surgeon will schedule the in-office procedure. The in-office earlobe repair procedure will begin with the surgeon applying a local anesthetic to numb the area. Next, excess tissue will be cut away and sutured together to create a natural, healthy looking earlobe.

An antibiotic cream will be provided after the procedure is complete, however, there is typically no bandaging necessary. The antibiotic cream will keep the stitches nice and clean to prevent infection. Patients should be extremely careful with the area as it heals, and may use over-the-counter painkillers as recommended by their surgeon to control any pain experienced.

Patients should wait until they are fully healed before considering piercing their ears again, and at this point it is recommended patients of earlobe repair stick to stud earrings (if earrings are necessary) that are extremely light. It is best to avoid dangling earrings to minimize the risk of tears.